Mother gets 78-year prison term for killing daughters, 15 and 5, in Virginia

Published September 22, 2023 2:30 PM

By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press

FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — A northern Virginia mother who sedated her daughters with melatonin-laced gummy bears before fatally shooting has been sentenced to 78 years in prison. Thirty-eight-year-old Veronica Youngblood was arrested in August 2018 after shooting her daughters, 15-year-old Sharon Castro and 5-year-old Brooklynn Youngblood, in their apartment in McLean. Castro survived long enough to call 911 and tell a dispatcher that her mother had shot her. Youngblood told detectives she planned to kill them and herself following a protracted custody dispute. Brooklynn had been set to move to Missouri with her father. Youngblood presented an insanity defense at trial but it was rejected.

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