Billings woman gets suspended sentence for biting, beating 3-year-old stepson

BILLINGS, Montana — A Billings woman convicted of beating and biting her 3-year-old stepson can avoid jail time after the judge found she had improved her parenting skills.

The Billings Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/ZO6GPq ) District Judge Mary Jane Knisely on Thursday gave 32-year-old Tonya Lynn Clemmer a five-year suspended sentence for felony assault on a minor for bruising the boy suffered in February 2011. She gave her a concurrent three-year deferred sentence for a second count for biting the child on the hand.

Knisely said she did not believe Clemmer's testimony that the boy's bruising was caused by a fall in the bathtub, but she said she believed Clemmer had improved her parenting skills by completing two parenting classes.

The victim and his older brother were returned to the care of their mother.

Information from: Billings Gazette, http://www.billingsgazette.com

Think your friends should see this? Share it with them!

Follow Us

^{Content enhanced with OpenCalais.}