A northern Virginia mother who sedated her two daughters with melatonin-laced gummy bears before fatally shooting them was sentenced Friday to 78 years in prison.
Veronica Youngblood, 38, was arrested in August 2018 after shooting daughters Sharon Castro, 15, and Brooklynn Youngblood, 5, in their apartment in McLean. Castro survived long enough to call 911 and tell a dispatcher she had been shot by her mother. Jurors heard a recording of that call during a two-week trial that was so traumatic that jurors inquired about whether they could receive trauma therapy.
Youngblood told detectives that she planned to kill them and herself following a protracted custody dispute. Ron Youngblood, her ex-husband, told The Associated Press after the hearing that he had wanted to move to Missouri with both daughters but had reluctantly agreed to take only Brooklyn after his ex-wife objected.
That sounds like a system issue and a cause of groups attempting to make the death penalty less attractive. Once there is irrefutable proof that a horrific crime such as this has been committed, there is no argument thus far that has convinced me death isn’t the most logical punishment. I’ve heard them all, for…a long time. The only thing that keeps me from the 100% point is that, like I said, humans have a history of abusing it when it comes to minority’s or the ‘irrefutable proof’ part.