LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) -- A 15-year-old central Florida girl accused of secretly giving birth to a son and then strangling him will spend at least 18 months in a state facility.
As part of a deal with Polk County prosecutors, Cassidy Goodson pleaded no contest Wednesday to manslaughter. She had previously been charged as an adult with first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse.
The Ledger reports that Goodson was arrested in September after deputies say she gave birth to a 9.5-pound boy and then strangled him.
Detectives say the girl hid her pregnancy from her family and gave birth at her home on Sept. 19. She told detectives she choked the baby and put him in a shoebox.
The girl's mother found the baby in the box, hidden in some laundry.
