By Beth Christian Broschart
The Parsons Advocate
PARSONS – A Maryland woman who pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of child neglect was sentenced Tuesday in Tucker County Circuit Court. April Miller, age 31, a former Elkins resident was sentenced to six months in jail on each of three misdemeanor counts of child neglect. Tucker County Circuit Court Judge Lynn Nelson sentenced Miller to 18 months in jail, but suspended the sentence for five years of supervised probation.
Miller pleaded guilty to the three misdemeanor counts of child neglect in August. At that time, the state dismissed several charges including one count of child neglect resulting in serious bodily injury, two counts of child neglect resulting in death, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and one count of permitting DUI.
Miller was indicted by a Tucker County Grand Jury in February 2014.
The charges stem from an accident that happened Aug. 7, 2013 at approximately 5 a.m. five miles south of Thomas. Joshua Lee Watson, 20, of Elkins, a 7-year-old boy and an 8-year-old girl, from Elkins, were all killed when the gold 1995 Honda Accord they were traveling in went left of center for unknown reasons and was struck by a 2006 F-550 truck.
During the accident, Watson and the 8-year-old female were ejected from the vehicle and the 7-year-old male was killed despite the fact that he was wearing a seatbelt, according to a WVSP press release issued around the time of the accident. A release at the time of the accident said Watson, Miller and the three children were returning from a funeral in Maryland when the accident occurred.
Miller was represented by her attorney Timothy Prentice and Tucker County Prosecuting Attorney Ray LaMora III represented the state.