Mother sentenced to over 12 years in prison for murder of infant

A Cambridge mother convicted of murdering her infant in 2017 was sentenced Thursday.

Shy Ann Hentges, 26, was sentenced to 12.5 years (150 months) in prison for the murder of her infant. She received credit for 772 days of time served.

Hentges was found guilty of second-degree murder in December.

According to a criminal complaint, the Isanti County Sheriff's Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension were assigned to investigate the death of an infant who died on April 5, 2017.

In an interview with investigators, Hentges said on April 5, she woke up at 2 a.m. to feed the child, then put him back down to sleep a half-hour later. Hentges told investigators that during the 2 a.m. feeding, the left side of the child's head hit the doorway of the bathroom.

Cambridge woman convicted of 2017 murder of infant

The complaint states the doorway would explain fractures on the child's head, but the fatal fracture occurred on the other side of the child's head.

When confronted by investigators, Hentges admitted to "maybe putting (the child) down too forcefully" in his crib. She told investigators she had thrown the child into the crib, causing his head to hit the wall, the complaint states.

In a January interview with Hentges, investigators had her recreate how she put the child back into his crib. Investigators said the way she carried the child and repositioned his body in her arms before throwing him down appeared to be intentional.