The wife of a Maryland mother convicted of scalding her 4-year-old stepson in a bath and tossing his body in a dumpster after he died will spend 30 years in prison in prison herself.
Shatika Lawson — wife of Malachi Lawson’s mother, Alicia Lawson — was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday with all but 30 years suspended. She’ll spend five years on probation after the sentence is complete, WJZ reported.
Both women were charged with the little boy’s death. Alicia Lawson pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death in August 2021 and received the same sentence, as CrimeOnline previously reported. Shatika Lawson pleaded guilty in May.
Shatika Lawson was allegedly distracted on the phone when she put Malachi in the hot bath, which reportedly burned him so badly his mothers found skin floating on the water. The Lawsons didn’t seek medical treatment because they feared the boy would be taken from their home.
Nine days later, Alicia Lawson found Malachi unresponsive. She wrapped the boy’s body in a blanket and left home in a ride share, depositing the body in a trash bag in a dumpster across town.
The two women reported her missing. Days later, the body was found in the dumpster. Investigators also learned that Alicia Lawson had searched trash pickup times on the same day her son died.
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[Featured image: Malachi Lawson/handout]
