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Mom who says toddler shot, killed her son faces sentencing
A plea deal for Wendy Lavarnia calls for 10 to 16 years in prison when she’s sentenced Thursday for manslaughter in the death of her son, Landen. Lavarnia claims Landen fatally shot her 9-year-old son with a handgun that she left on a bed.
PHOENIX (AP/FOX 10) - A Phoenix woman who says her 2-year-old son fatally shot her 9-year-old son with a handgun that she left on a bed was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her role in the 2017 killing.
The sentence given Thursday to Wendy Lavarnia in the death of her son, Landen, marked the most lenient punishment available under the terms of her guilty pleas to manslaughter and attempted child abuse.
Wendy Lavarnia
She has acknowledged that she caused his death by recklessly leaving the gun out where the toddler could grab it while the children played a video game.
Still, authorities who had expressed skepticism about Lavarnia’s account of the shooting say they were unable to definitively say who fired the gun.