Mother Pleads Guilty To Starving Daughter

Andrea Kelly has pleaded guilty after almost 3 years since her daughter’s death.

The 39 year old has pleaded guilty to third-degree murder and child endangerment in the death of her 14 year old daughter, Danieal.

Danieal’s 19 kilogram, was discovered in her Kelly’s Philadelphia apartment in the US state of Pennsylvania. Her body was found infested by maggots. Danieal had suffered from cerebral palsy and could not walk. During her last hours flies and maggots swarmed around her sores, as she would mutter to her brother 'water', he would plead his mother to call the ambulance but she would reject that request, according to the grand jury report.

Danieal - once a chubby-cheeked child who beamed in photographs taken on school trips - had deteriorated in the years since her father split with a stepmother in Arizona and she returned to her mother's care in Philadelphia. She lost more than half her body weight and never left the dark, squalid house for school or even fresh air.

Kelly had told the court ”I do accept part of my daughter’s death,” and she continued on to say ”I wish I could have done more to save her.”

Social workers, the girl’s father and others are still fighting criminal charges. A complex civil suit is pending in federal court on behalf of the girl’s estate.

The beneficiaries are likely to be her many siblings. Lawyers say they are mostly in foster care.

Kelly has been sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison.