Erika Murray to serve 6-8 years in House of Horrors case

By News Staff

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WORCESTER, Mass. (WLNE) – The mother at the center of the Blackstone House of Horrors trial returned to Worcester Superior Court Thursday afternoon for sentencing.

Erika Murray was sentenced to six to eight years in prison on charges of assault and battery and cruelty to animals. 

According to a spokesman with the Worcester County District Attorney’s Office, Murray was sentenced to two to three years in prison on one of the animal cruelty charges, and was sentenced to four to five years on one of the assault and battery charges.

A judge ordered probation for the other assault and battery charge and the other animal cruelty charge, the spokesperson told ABC 6.

In June, Murray was acquitted of murder in the death of one of her three babies after a judge said prosecutors failed to prove that she caused the death of the child, but was found guilty on the other charges. 

During sentencing on Thursday, Assistant District Attorney Christopher Hodgens told the court that Murray stood by as her children suffered from developmental delays because of neglect and because of the filthy conditions of her home.

“[Erika Murray] was not a passerby, the defendant was not a bystander. The defendant stood in a very significant position; she was a parent,” Hodgens told Judge Janet Kenton Walker before sentencing. “The defendant was derelict in her duties as a parent.”

But Murray’s lawyer Keith Halpern told the judge that there should be leniency as the case is not typical.

He said Murray was suffering from mental health issues, which should be considered, and that Murray did not purposely commit the crimes.

“If the evidence had established that she intended to cause harm to these children, and was aware of what she was doing, and did it on purpose, but there’s no evidence of that,” Halpern said.

Outside of court, Halpern told reporters he was disappointed with the sentencing, adding that Murray had received extensive mental health treatment in prison and is ready to rejoin society.

“She hopes to lead as normal and as anonymous of a life as she possibly can. And work and be left alone,” Halpern said. “I was hoping shed be walking out with me and I’m disappointed that shes not.”

Halpern said Murray has extensive support from her family, and her mother was inside the courtroom during sentencing. Murray’s mother did not speak to reporters outside of court.

Before the sentence was handed down, Halpern filed a motion to get the convictions of assault and battery thrown out. That motion was denied.

Halpern plans on filing an appeal to get that conviction overturned because of Murray’s mental health.

Since Murray’s arrest in 2014, she has already served 5 years., which will be counted toward her sentence as time served. 

She will now have two to three more years behind bars, at which time she will begin five years of probation with conditions that she have no unsupervised contact with children under 10, she continues to undergo mental health treatment, and she complies with all requests from DCF.

She will continue serving time at the women’s facility in Chicopee.

The Worcester County District Attorney’s Office had no comment after sentencing.

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