October, 14: Dad sentenced to 18 years for child’s beating
On Wednesday, Benjamin Edetanlen was sentenced to eighteen years in prison in death of his five-month old son in 2004. Edetanlen lived in DeKalb county at the time of the incident. Edetanlen’s attorney claimed that the bible inspired the killing.
Edetanlen’s five month old son died from blunt force trauma. The autopsy revealed brain injuries and a broken leg. Children at this age are very susceptible to brain damage and death when handled too rough. Edetanlen’s two year old daughter and one year old son were also injured in the incident that killed their younger brother.
Edetanlen allegedly followed rules from the biblical book of proverbs when disciplining his children. His defense attorney argued that Edetanlen also followed the rule of “spare the rod, spoil the child”, and truly cared for all of his children.
Nevertheless, Edetanlen decided to plead down to involuntary manslaughter and multiple counts of child cruelty. Assistant District attorney Dalia Racine requested the eighteen year sentence.
When he is released from prison in eighteen years, he will not be able to contact any of his children. The mother of these children has also been charged in this case for not protecting her children from Edetanlen’s violence.
Benjamin Edetanlen