Parents, relatives avoid jail time in Columbia County case involving girl s death
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Columbia County DA Paul Czajka speaks with reporters following sentencing of former Troy police officers John Comitale and Ron Epstein in Rensselaer County Court for sentencing Tuesday Nov. 13, 2018 in Troy, NY. (John Carl D Annibale/Times Union)John Carl D Annibale/Albany Times Union
HUDSON - The parents and relatives who pleaded guilty to child endangerment charges in a case involving the death of a girl were sentenced in Columbia County Court to three years of probation and ordered to complete 50 hours of community service on Thursday.
None of the defendants were sentenced to jail, including the parents, Steven Bennett, 58, and Heidi Trangberg-Bennett, 47, who were originally charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death of their 12-year-old daughter, Evanna.
AUSTERLITZ â An Austerlitz family has pleaded guilty in the death of a 12-year-old girl.
The girlâs parents, along with five other family members, pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child, a class A misdemeanor, in relation to the 2019 death of the child.
âThis conviction is in full satisfaction of all charges,â Columbia County District Attorney Paul Czajka said.
The family members had previously been charged with second-degree manslaughter, a class C felony. Family members had pleaded not guilty to the previous charge.
Czajka announced Wednesday that Judge Richard Koweek had accepted the guilty pleas in Columbia County Court.