Joanna Ford can apply for a substance abuse program in the prison system, a judge ruled Friday.
“The court is not shortening her sentence,” said Judge Lisa McDougal. “The defendant will serve every day. The court will make her eligible but will not approve participation until she is within two years of her release date.”
Ford, 33, of Mineral Point, was sentenced two years ago to 11 years in prison and 12 years extended supervision.
She pled guilty to one count of neglecting a child resulting in the death of four-month-old Wyatt Hamlin and four other counts of neglecting a child.
McDougal said the “significant prison sentence was warranted” due to the “horrific and irrevocable harm done to Wyatt Hamlin and his family.”
At the time of sentencing, court officials believed Ford was not eligible for the treatment program, but her crime is not excluded by statute.
If Ford’s substance abuse is left untreated, the public may be at risk after her release, McDougal said.
“Successful treatment will help ensure that Ms. Ford will not reoffend in the future,” the judge said. “The eligibility determination made today is designed to rehabilitate with the objective of keeping the community safer in the long run.”
The wait list for the program is six to nine months, “so all in all, it could take 20 months for an inmate to complete the program,” McDougal said.
The program “requires intense participation, 40 hours a week for six to nine months just prior to reentry into society,” she said. “It is not only in her best interest, but the interest of society to allow her to apply for this program.”
Ford, her attorney and the judge attended the short session remotely.
Supporters of the Hamlin family filled seats in half the courtroom.