Shelley Blair Sentenced To 16 Years In Prison

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Tenn. - A judge has sentenced Shelley Blair to 16 years in prison for the alleged abuse of her adopted children.

The sentence came around 2 p.m. Thursday afternoon after the second day of testimony. The state was seeking the maximum sentence of 22 years.

Blair pleaded guilty in October to four charges, including especially aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping and aggravated assault. In return for the plea, 15 other charges were dropped, including aggravated child neglect.

In October 2008, police found her 13-year-old adopted daughter and 12-year-old adopted son riding bikes down Columbia Pike. The children said they were running away from home.

They told police they were routinely left at home alone while Blair worked. Sometimes they were bound with duct tape to prevent them from escaping.

In court, Blair admitted that she starved the children, and used duct tape on their wrists at least once a week for a few months, and locked them in their rooms where they had to relieve themselves in buckets.

She also told the courtroom that she had fostered more than 40 children over the years, including some not adopted through the state of Tennessee.

The judge said prison would be a luxury compared to the home she provided for the children. He added that Blair's heart overwhelmed her mind when wanting to help children she wasn't capable of caring for.