JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A man accused of running over and killing his 8-month-old son was sentenced today to 30 years in prison.
Justin Golden was sentenced after pleading guilty in September to aggravated manslaughter of a child.
According to prosecutors, the incident happened on January 25 at the intersection of McDuff Avenue South and Lenox Avenue. Golden was arguing with the child’s mother when he took his infant son, Pablo, out of the car and placed him on the roadway.
After setting the child down, Golden drove away, striking and killing the baby.
Prosecutors argued the child’s death was not an accident, but the result of an intentional act Golden knew would put his son in danger.
“I have seen people exercise more care, caution and concern for a squirrel that darts into the roadway, a lizard that is on the hood of their car,” a prosecutor said in court. “I have seen people act more carefully in a car than the way this defendant did with his own son’s life.”
During sentencing, Golden apologized for the pain he caused his son, his family and the community.
“I failed as his protector, his father, and I was the monster who killed him,” Golden said.
The judge agreed with prosecutors, handing down the maximum sentence allowed under the law.
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