Prosecutors to seek death penalty in toddler’s death

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against a Utah couple accused of taunting their malnourished 3-year-old daughter with food before she died.

The state filed the notice Tuesday in the case of 25-year-old Miller Costello and 23-year-old Brenda Emile.

The Ogden couple is accused of recording cellphone videos of themselves taunting Angelina Costello as her condition worsened before her July 2017 death.

Both have pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder charges.

Emile’s attorney Martin Gravis has also argued there was no definitive evidence to suggest she caused the girl’s death. A judge, though, disagreed and pointed to an allegation that Emile used makeup to conceal the girl’s burns, bruises and cuts.

If the couple is convicted, prosecutors would push for capital punishment in a separate sentencing hearing.