Man sentenced to life in prison for killing baby

By Samantha Fenlon

sfenlon@abc6.com 

Three years after a baby was beaten to death in New Bedford, Ethen Harrison pleads guilty to her murder. Thursday afternoon, Harrison was sentenced to life in prison.

The 24-year-old plead guilty to a charge of second degree murder. He admitted to hitting and shaking 9-month-old Ariel Eluziario on the day that she died.

Back in January of 2013, Harrison was watching Ariel, his then-girlfriend’s baby, in her New Bedford home. About two hours into babysitting, he took Ariel to her mother at work. The baby was limp and unresponsive.

Harrison admits he became frustrated because the baby wouldn’t stop crying, saying he struck and shook the infant.

"He indicated at some point that he was wrapping the child–the baby–in a blanket when in the course of doing that the child’s head hit the floor with force. He then indicated at some point he threw the baby onto a bed, the baby bounced off the bed, and fell to the floor, striking her head again with some force," said the prosecutor.

The baby was hemorrhaging behind both eyes by the time she was taken to the hospital and had a blood clot in her brain. An autopsy found the infant was bleeding between her brain and skull.

The judge read victim impact statements from Ariel’s mothers family silently in the courtroom before formally issuing a sentence.

"Life in prison is an appropriate sentence to impose for these particular facts," the judge said.

Harrison has the possibility of parole after 15 years.

© WLNE-TV 2016