NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (AP) - A Massachusetts man was convicted Friday of trying to kill his 7-year-old daughter by poisoning her with drain cleaner and prescription painkillers.
Christopher Conley, 37, of Northampton was convicted by a Hampshire Superior Court jury of three charges including attempted murder following a three-week trial and a day of deliberations.
Conley injected Liquid-Plumr into his severely ill daughter’s cecostomy tube on April 15, 2015 and then tried to give her an overdose ofher opioid pain medications, prosecutors said.A cecostomy tube is used to help empty the bowels.
As a result, the girl had to undergo a seven-hour surgery to remove two-thirds of her small intestine and another surgery to removeone-thirdof her bladder, authorities said.
Conley told police at the time of his arrest he tried to kill the girl because he wanted to end her suffering.
But he took the stand at trial and recanted, saying he was pressured by his wife, who is awaiting trial on an assault and battery charge. He testified he wanted to make sure his daughter didn’t lose both her parents.
His attorney, Mark Bluver, said in court the girl’s injuries were caused by a rare but natural condition that doctors failed to diagnose.
Conley faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on the attempted murder conviction at sentencing scheduled for Monday.
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