TREVOR HYLTON - 3 yo (2009) - Pulaski (SW of Roanoke) VA

by TomTerrific0420 Sat Jul 03, 2010 12:41 pm

Pulaski County jurors deliberated about an hour this afternoon before
finding a mother whose 3-year-old son died after ingesting methadone
guilty of second-degree murder.
Jurors also found Lisa Michelle Hylton, 39, of Pulaski guilty of
child neglect in connection with the accidental death of Trevor Hylton.
They recommended that she serve 20 years in prison -- 10 years for
each charge. A formal sentencing date will be set later.
The murder charge carried a sentence of five to 40 years in prison.
The neglect charge, another two to 10 years.
Jurors, who listened to testimony Thursday and most of today, had the
option to find Hylton guilty of the lesser charge of involuntary
manslaughter.
Hylton testified for about an hour this afternoon, telling jurors she
bought the liquid methadone Sept. 29 from a drug dealer because she was
trying to wean herself off painkillers.
She paid for 75 miligrams of the drug, but worried she had been
shorted. When she got home, she testified, she poured the methadone into
the same measuring cup she had been using to give her son Robitussin.
She discovered she had been sold only 25 miligrams of methadone. She
left the measuring cup on the counter and walked away.
Her father, James Hylton, testified that he thought the measuring cup
contained Trevor's next dose of Robitussin. He told jurors he dipped a
finger into the liquid, found that it tasted like cherries and told the
toddler it was OK to drink it.
Lisa Hylton tried to treat Trevor at home rather than get medical
help. By the time he was taken to Pulaski Community Hospital about 14
hours later, he couldn’t be saved.
Assistant Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Christena Roberts testified
Thursday that the amount of methadone in Trevor’s blood could have been
lethal even for an adult.
Pulaski County Commonwealth’s Attorney Mike Fleenor told the jury
that Hylton did not want to take Trevor to a hospital because a juvenile
and domestic relations court judge had warned her not to have illegal
drugs in the house.