Mom gets 50 years after entering guilty pleas in deaths of newborn children
LAKE MARY, Fla. - A Brevard County woman facing two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of her two newborn children entered guilty pleas on Tuesday.
Judge Charles Crawford sentenced 33-year-old Rachael Thomas to 50 years in prison.
The murders were discovered on April 15, 2018, inside Thomas's West Melbourne home after she called 911 to report a single newborn child that wasn’t breathing. However, West Melbourne Police later discovered a second deceased newborn child at the home.
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Thomas also pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated child abuse and one count of tampering with physical evidence and was sentenced to 30 years and five 5 years, respectively, to be served concurrently. The sentence did not include probation.
The plea agreement was reached after prosecutors dropped first-degree premeditated murder charges that carried a potential death penalty.
Thomas will be transferred to the Florida Department of Corrections on a future undisclosed date to begin serving her sentence.