Penobscot County Jail
BANGOR, Maine (TCN) — The mother and paternal grandmother of a 10-year-old boy have been sentenced to prison for their roles in the child’s death in 2024.
Jem Bean, 37, and Mistie Latourette, 59, will each spend 10 years behind bars after pleading guilty to manslaughter in connection with the death of Bean’s son, Braxtyn Smith, WABI reports.
The child’s father, Joshua Smith, pleaded guilty to depraved indifference murder in June, two days after asking to change his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity. Latourette is Joshua Smith’s mother.
According to WGME, Braxtyn Smith died from blunt force trauma after enduring months of starvation, abuse, and neglect. He weighed 48 pounds when he died.
Bean and Latourette brought the boy to a hospital on Feb. 18, 2024. They reportedly said he had vomited and was not feeling well. The child did not have a pulse when he arrived and was pronounced dead that night.
Medical staff reportedly saw bruising all over his body and bleeding between his skull and brain. His condition was consistent with battered child syndrome, and his death was ruled a homicide.
Bean told investigators she and Joshua Smith used zip ties to restrain their son when he had tantrums, but she denied abusing him. Witnesses reportedly said the boy ate from the trash and was fed dog food. Braxtyn Smith was homeschooled and was allegedly forced to sleep in a bathroom with his hands and ankles bound.
Prosecutors said Bean did not directly cause Braxtyn’s fatal injuries but failed to protect him, WABI reports. She apologized to her son and his surviving younger sister during her sentencing hearing. Bean was also sentenced to six years of probation and ordered to pay $375 toward her son’s funeral expenses. She is prohibited from contacting her biological daughter, who has since been adopted.
Latourette was also sentenced to four years of probation and ordered to pay $375 in restitution. She is prohibited from contacting Braxtyn Smith’s sister or any child younger than 14.
Prosecutors identified Joshua Smith as Braxtyn Smith’s primary abuser. He is expected to be sentenced in September.
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