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Thread: Keith Andrew Cornett Gets Life Sentence in 2016 SD Murder of his 18-month-old Stepson, Hayden Wigton

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    Keith Andrew Cornett Gets Life Sentence in 2016 SD Murder of his 18-month-old Stepson, Hayden Wigton

    The state plans to seek the death penalty if a man accused of killing an 18-month-old in 2016 is convicted at jury trial.

    The Minnehaha County State's Attorney's Office filed a notice of intent this week saying the state intends to seek a jury recommendation of a death sentence if Keith Andrew Cornett is found guilty at trial.

    Cornett, 38, was charged in December 2016 with first- and second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and abuse or cruelty to a minor after his 18-month-old stepson was found unresponsive in his Dell Rapids home.

    Should a jury find Cornett guilty of first-degree murder, the state will have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt the "aggravating circumstances" of a death penalty case are met, and it will be up to the jury to impose the sentence.

    Those aggravating circumstances are that the offense was "outrageously or wantonly vile, horrible or inhuman in that it involved torture, depravity of mind, or an aggravated battery to the victim"; that the victim of the offense was less than 13 years old; and that the offense was committed by a person who has a felony conviction for a crime of violence.

    Cornett has wanted his case to go to a jury trial from the beginning.

    At a June hearing, Cornett pleaded with Second Circuit Court Judge Bradley Zell to give him new attorneys. He felt the ones he had from the Public Advocates Office were unprofessional and using his faith to manipulate him into taking a plea deal rather than go to a jury trial.

    More: Dell Rapids man charged with murder feels 'bullied' by attorneys

    He requested new representation and said he'd rather represent himself than continue with his current attorneys.

    "I want the truth to come out in this, and that's why I want to go to trial," Cornett said.

    The court denied Cornett's request to represent himself knowing the state plans to seek the death penalty if he's found guilty. The court assigned Michael Butler and Clint Sargent, who have death penalty and murder trial experience, respectively, to represent Cornett.

    A motions hearing for the case is scheduled in November. Jury trial is as of this week set to start in March 2019. Trial dates may change.

    https://www.argusleader.com/story/ne...ld/1765544002/
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  2. #2
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    Dell Rapids man accused of killing toddler in 2016 pleads guilty to second-degree murder

    By Danielle Ferguson
    The Sioux Falls Argus-Leader

    A Dell Rapids man accused of killing his 18-month-old stepson in 2016 has pleaded guilty, but says he doesn't remember the alleged incidents of the night the child died.

    Keith Andrew Cornett pleaded guilty to second-degree murder through an Alford Plea on Friday morning, in exchange for the state dropping the pursuit of the death penalty and other charges in the case.

    Cornett, 39, was initially charged with first- and second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and child abuse in December 2016 after a child was found bruised and unresponsive in a Dell Rapids home.

    Cornett made his plea four months before he was scheduled to go to trial, something he has said he has wanted from the beginning of his case. In June 2018, Cornett requested new attorneys, because, he said, the ones he had were unprofessional and using his faith to manipulate him into taking a plea deal instead of going to trial.

    Cornett entered an Alford Plea, meaning he doesn't admit to causing the child's injuries, but acknowledges that had jurors heard the evidence against him, they could have convicted him. He agreed to the plea deal in part because the state announced it was going to seek the death penalty had he been convicted of first-degree murder.

    Cornett maintains that he doesn't remember what happened the day of the child's death, another reason he entered an Alford Plea.

    According to a factual basis read in court by Minnehaha County State's Attorney Aaron McGowan:

    Cornett and his wife were renting from a couple in a Dell Rapids home. On the day of the incident, the couple had left in the morning and saw Cornett playing with the victim and caring for another child.

    The couple had gone to Sioux Falls that day and when they returned in the afternoon, saw the child on the couch, covered with a blanket. They noticed blood on a nearby pillow and saw that the child had bruising.

    As the couple called 911, a family friend returned home with Cornett, who had left the home and walked a few blocks to the family friend's home, where the victim's grandmother was visiting. The family friend said Cornett had arrived at the home with the other child, who was only in a "sleeper," despite cold temperatures, McGowan said. That child went with the grandmother.

    Cornett, who later told authorities he had been drinking that morning and was "heavily intoxicated," had a bloodied sweatshirt he had rolled up and swaddled like a baby, the family friend told authorities.

    An autopsy listed the cause of death as blunt force trauma, and the manner of death homicide. There were multiple impact points in the skull, McGowan said, some of which would have been caused by at least 150 pounds of pressure. The child also had bite marks, according to previous court proceedings.

    Second-degree murder has a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Cornett's sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 30.

    https://argusleader.com/story/news/c...tt/3698431002/

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    'You are the foulest of them all': Dell Rapids man sentenced to life in prison for murder of 18-month-old

    By Danielle Ferguson
    The Sioux Falls Argus-Leader

    Richard Wigton had something to say to the man who killed his grandson.

    Wigton pulled out a tiny, red urn and sat it on the witness stand a few feet in front of Keith Andrew Cornett.

    "This is what's left of a vibrant child," Wigton, with staggered breaths, told Cornett. "You deprived (our family) of watching him grow."

    Cornett, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the 2016 death of his 18-month-old stepson Hayden Wigton, was sentenced Thursday by Judge Natalie Damgaard to life in prison, in keeping with the state statute for second-degree murder convictions.

    Cornett, 39, accepted an Alford Plea on May 17 — the day Hayden would have turned 4 — in exchange for the state dropping its pursuit of the death penalty and other charges in the case. The Alford plea has the same effect as a guilty plea, but allows a defendant to maintain his or her innocence, while acknowledging that if jurors were to hear the evidence, they could reach a guilty verdict.

    "There are monsters in this world," Richard Wigton said to the court in his victim impact statement. "You are the foulest of them all."

    Wigton told Cornett of the ripple effects Hayden's death had on his family, law enforcement and anyone who had contact with the case.

    "Anybody involved has had nightmares of what you've done to my grandson," Wigton said.

    Minnehaha County State's Attorney Aaron McGowan, who prosecuted the case, said the injuries found on the autopsy — including skull fractures that "eggshelled" the skull — were among the worst he has ever seen.

    "The injuries were caused by nefarious intent and an evil heart," McGowan said.

    The case has been pending for two and a half years, and the sentencing can provide some sense of closure to the family and others who worked on the case, McGowan said. He credited Cornett for "finally taking responsibility" by taking a plea deal rather than putting the family through a murder trial and possibly a death penalty trial.

    A lifelong sentence was appropriate, McGowan said.

    "He has no respect for human life," McGowan said.

    Hayden's mother, Kristine Wigton, addressed Cornett in court.

    "You were supposed to be my husband and my best friend," Wigton said. "You brutally beat my son to death...You have ruined me. You are an evil person. I don't care what happens to you."

    Cornett did not address the court when given the opportunity.

    Cornett agreed to the plea deal in part because the prosecution announced it was going to seek the death penalty had he been convicted of first-degree murder and in part because he says he doesn't remember what happened the day of the child's death.

    Cornett made his plea four months before he was scheduled to go to trial, something he has said he has wanted from the beginning of his case. In June 2018, Cornett requested new attorneys because the ones he had, he said, were unprofessional and using his faith to manipulate him into taking a plea deal instead of going to trial.

    https://argusleader.com/story/news/c...ng/1276278001/

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