It took just an hour of deliberations for a Greenville County South Carolina jury to find former Food Network star Ariel Robinson guilty of homicide by child abuse.
The verdict ended a four-day trial that included testimony from Robinson and her husband, as well as graphic pictures of the injuries inflicted on 3-year-old Victoria “Tori” Smith.
Robinson, age 30, was sentenced Thursday to life in prison, according to Judge Letitia Verdin. Her husband is awaiting his sentencing.
…….the jury…..heard from Austin Robinson, Ariel Robinson’s husband. He gave a tearful account of his wife’s alleged abuse of the child. He has pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting homicide by child abuse.
He said his wife used a belt on Smith because the young girl was not eating her breakfast pancakes fast enough. The child suffered severe bruising and later died from internal injuries sustained during the beating.
Austin Robinson said on the day of the beating, his wife was heard yelling at the child and he could hear her beating Smith even though he was outside in his yard. He claimed he did not know his wife was hitting the child with a belt until he went inside. The beating allegedly went on for about an hour, he said.
……..The jury also saw bodycam footage on Wednesday taken when first responders arrived on the scene on the day of the incident. The footage showed the child unresponsive on her bedroom floor, covered in bruises.
………The Greenville County chief medical examiner told the courtroom that his autopsy showed damage that went far beyond what Ariel Robinson said happened.
“This isn’t what we think of as a traditional bruise of the skin. This is a severe, deep injury that is tearing tissue from tissue,” Dr. Michael Ward said.
Another witness, a pediatric intensive care doctor, said the injuries she saw on Smith were the worst she has seen.
“This is extensive, dependent on a child’s body that was inflicted repetitively by blunt force trauma, which is the worst I’ve seen,” said Dr. Christina Goben.
Austin Robinson was sentenced to 20 years.
A week before she murdered the child, she tweeted about white kids “privilege”.
The lovely couple:
Look at how thin the child became after being subjected to Robinson’s abuse.
The system not only failed the child, but gave a monster like Robinson the opportunity to beat the “white privilege” out of her.
There’s a special place in hell for Robinson and her husband.
Related article:
https://www.dailywire.com/news/food-network-show-winner-charged-in-beating-death-of-adopted-daughter