Man Sentenced For Toddler's Beating Death

MIAMI -- A man was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the beating death of his 16-month old nephew.

Gregory Joseph, 25, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder charges and aggravated child abuse in the April 2003 death of Deondre Bondieumaitre. Joseph had been the boy's legal guardian after the Department of Children & Families removed the boy from the care of his parents. Joseph also had two other children in his care at the time of the killing.

Police had said Joseph punched Deondre while they were riding in the car. When they returned home, the youngster defecated in a bathtub during a bath. Joseph beat Deondre, causing the child to fall back and strike his head. The toddler then began having seizures and later died at a hospital.

Joseph had been charged with first-degree murder. Circuit Judge Bertila Soto accepted Joseph's guilty pleas Thursday and sentenced him to 40 years in prison for second-degree murder, plus a concurrent 30-year prison sentence on the child abuse charge.