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Norfolk man sentenced to 16 years in jail for 5-month-old daughter’s death

Posted at 9:41 AM, Nov 20, 2015
and last updated 2015-11-20 13:30:32-05

Norfolk, Va. – A former Navy sailor charged in the murder of his 5-month-old daughter was sentenced Friday in Norfolk.

Andrew Givens was charged with second-degree murder after his daughter died in February of 2015.

On Friday,a  judge sentenced Givens to 40 years in jail with all but 16 suspended, plus 20 years of uniform good behavior.

Andrew Givens

Andrew Givens

His daughter, Gabrielle Givens was found with a head injury and she later died in the hospital. The Medical Examiner says she died of blunt force trauma. The prosecutor said in court that Gabrielle was brutally shaken and beaten to death.

Over the summer, Givens entered an Alford Plea, meaning he wasn’t admitted guilt, but he admitted there was enough evidence to convict him.

Four people testified on Givens’ behalf, including Gabrielle’s mother. She described Givens as “an awesome father and everything a father should be.” She said Givens did not kill Gabrielle and blamed the babysitter for all of her health issues.

Givens was a corpsman in the Navy and was other-than-honorably discharged in 2011. The details of his discharge were not discussed.

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