A 12-person jury found Heather Jensen guilty of child abuse that led to the hyperthermia deaths of her two young sons in 2012, but the same jury found her not guilty of criminally negligent homicide.
The split verdict came after a day and a half of deliberations following an emotional four days of testimony about the events surrounding the deaths of William Jensen, 2, and Tyler Jensen, 4. The boys died of overheating while strapped and locked in their mother's SUV on a cold evening in late November.
Jensen had left her sons in her vehicle with the heater on while she had sex and smoked marijuana with a man in a nearby vehicle.
The full courtroom was silent when the split verdict was read. But Jensen, 25, sobbed loudly in the arms of her defense attorney once the eight women and four men on the jury left the room.
Jensen's mother and other family members, who had been spectators at the nine-day trial, also cried and angrily repeated over and over, "We will be back."
Family members of Jensen left the courtroom hand-in-hand and would make no other comments on the verdict.
Robert Mathena, the step-grandfather of the deceased boys, said he felt like justice had been served.
"Thank God it's over," he said outside the courtroom.
The guilty verdict on the two felony counts of child abuse resulting in death means that Jensen could face from four to 32 years in prison for each count, depending on if the judge determines there were aggravating circumstances.
The jury also found Jensen guilty of one count of false reporting to authorities because she didn't tell investigators the truth about the fact that the boys had been in their car seats for as long as 90 minutes before she discovered the younger boy was not breathing and his older brother was struggling to breath.
William was declared dead at the scene where Jensen had pulled her vehicle over on the Grand Mesa that night and Tyler died a week later at Children's Hospital in Aurora.
Jensen's defense had tried to show that the incident was a tragic accident but not a crime. The single witness they called in her defense, a psychologist who had interviewed Jensen once while she was in jail last summer, testified that she has below-average intelligence and psychological problems, including poor impulse control.
The prosecution called 20 witnesses, including investigators, physicians and the man who Jensen had met on the Grand Mesa when her children died.
Mesa County Assistant District Attorney Rich Tuttle stressed the point that Jensen's behavior that night represented a gross deviation from normal behavior and was criminally negligent.
Jensen will be sentenced March 21.
Read more: Heather Jensen, Palisade mom whose 2 toddlers died in SUV, guilty of child abuse charge - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_25...#ixzz2s0pPiXmw
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http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_25...v-be-sentenced
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.?A Colorado woman has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the deaths of her two young sons who overheated when they were left alone in an SUV with the motor running and the heater on.
The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel reports Heather Jensen was sentenced Friday in Mesa County District Court.
She was convicted Jan. 31 on two counts of fatal child abuse. She was acquitted on two counts of criminally negligent homicide.
Her attorneys have said they'll appeal the conviction.
Authorities said Jensen's 2- and 4-year-old boys died of hyperthermia in late November 2012. Prosecutors said she was having sex and smoking marijuana in another vehicle nearby.
Family and friends asked the judge for leniency. One said a prolonged sentence would compound Jensen's grief.
How about some fucking leniency for those boys! I tell you, my mom would not be asking for any leniency for me--she'd ask for more time added.
Fibro Fog has taken over. I am in a constant state of dyscognition so please excuse my retardation.
'The worst things in the world are justified by belief'- Raised by Wolves SOI
"Your life is short, it's the longest thing you'll ever do/ the worse the curse was that your dreams came true/
God is a mirror in which each man sees himself/ Hell is place where you don't need anyone's help"
~You got to cry with out weeping. Talk without speaking
Scream without raising your voice~
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