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Montgomery County Woman Sentenced In Overdose Death Of 2-Year-Old Daughter

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- It's state prison time for the Montgomery County mother who fell asleep and let her toddler die, rather than calling for help after the little girl swallowed pills in a King of Prussia motel in 2015.

Christina Griffith has been sentenced to two-and-a-half to six years in state prison followed by eight years probation. The 36-year-old Lower Providence woman pleaded guilty earlier this year to involuntary manslaughter after her 2-year-old daughter Trinity swallowed two pills. Instead of calling 9-1-1, Griffith says she fell asleep next to her daughter, and when she woke up the girl was dead.

Trinity Griffith
Trinity Griffith (Photo provided by family)

Prosecutor Rob Kolansky says a call to 9-1-1 would have easily saved the little girl's life.

"Subutex and Klonopin are the types of pills or substances that have antidotes that are readily accessible to law enforcement and the medical community," he said.

Kolansky says they welcome the prison sentence, but acknowledge it won't change what happened.

"We can't bring her back," he said. "She won't have the opportunities that would be afforded to another girl had her mother acted in situation such as this one."

Griffith's attorney, Henry Hiles, says the most significant price she'll pay is shouldering the responsibility for her daughter's death.

"She loved her little girl," Hiles said. "She knows the decisions she made resulted in her little girl's death and that's something that will haunt her for the rest of her life."

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