Jami Castine, 29, was convicted of first- and second-degree assault after allegedly abusing twin toddler boys in her care. She was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison
A New Hampshire woman convicted of abusing twin toddlers, leaving one of them blind in one eye, has been sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison.
A jury has convicted 29-year-old Jami Castine, of Epping, New Hampshire, of first-degree assault and second-degree assault charges.
During the two-week trial, prosecutors said Castine volunteered to watch Lindsey Dubon-Romero’s 18-month-old twin boys, Jossiah and Isaiah, between March 31 and April 8, 2016.
‘She is the woman who tore my family apart, made my son blind and emotionally ruined them,’ Dubon-Romero said of Castine during her sentencing hearing, according to WMUR.
Castine was accused of repeatedly hitting Jossiah in the head, resulting in brain bleeds, retinal hemorrhaging and detached retinas. She was also accused of hitting Isiah, leaving him with multiple bruises.
Prosecutors said that, as a result of the beatings, Jossiah is now blind in his left eye and suffered brain damage.
The investigation began after Epping police were called to Castine’s residence when Jossiah was found unresponsive.
Castine’s public defense team said that she was innocent and that it was impossible to prove exactly when and how the twins’ injuries occurred.
The prosecution said that Castine had attempted to lay the blame on the twins’ three-year-old brother, suggesting that he was aggressive towards them and had been the one that hurt the twins.
Prosecutors said that Castine had abused twin boys Jossiah (pictured) and Isiah while they were in her care. Jossiah was beaten so hard, he was left blind in one eye and suffered brain damage. He’s pictured here while in a coma at the hospital
Castine’s defense team asked for leniency during her sentencing hearing, noting that she had been sexually assaulted as a teen and grew up with an abusive mother
Prosecutors said that Castine volunteered to watch the children because Dubon-Romero was homeless at the time, after her immigrant husband’s deportation, and was staying at a shelter while searching for a job, according to Seacoast Online.
Dubon-Romero and Castine had apparently been introduced to each other through a friend of Dubon-Romero’s.
At Castine’s sentencing hearing, Dubon-Romero asked that the maximum sentence of 25 to 70 years be handed down to Castine.
‘We don’t know what damage has been done to his brain,’ Dubon-Romero said, adding that Jossiah ‘will never be able to be a normal child.’
Rockingham County Attorney Patricia Conway said that witnesses had seen Castine ‘rip one of the babies by the wrist’ and treat the child ‘like a rag doll.’
Castine did not speak in court, but her defense team asked for leniency, in light of the fact that she had been sexually assaulted when she was 15.
Her defense attorney, Joseph Malfitani, said that Castine was ‘borderline developmentally disabled, left school at age 16, did not complete the ninth grade, comes from a dysfunctional family with an extremely abusive mother.’
Malfitani asked for a sentence of 15 to 40 years for Castine.
Castine was ultimately sentenced to 20 to 40 years in jail.
Castine has three children of her own, who were removed from her care after the twins’ abuse charges were filed, according to the Union Leader.