Idaho Man Gets Life For Killing 8-Year-Old

An Idaho man will serve the rest of his life in prison for killing his girlfriend’s 8-year-old son, then stuffing rocks in the boy’s pants pockets and dumping his body in an irrigation canal.

A district judge sentenced 38-year-old Daniel Ehrlick on Friday in a packed Boise, Idaho, courtroom for the first-degree murder of Robert Manwill during the summer of 2009. The boy’s body was found in a canal about a week after his disappearance set off a massive, high-profile search.

Ehrlick was convicted in June and will not have the possibility of parole.

The boy’s mother, Melissa Jenkins, is expected to be sentenced later Friday for her role in the slaying. Jenkins pleaded guilty to aiding in her son’s killing and faces up to 25 years in prison.