A Long Beach-based Army officer whose wife is facing murder charges for the death of their one-year-old daughter, was convicted of negilgent homicide and Court Martialed for his role in the toddler's death.
He was sentenced to 90 days of detainment
Sergeant First Class Derrick Wilborn, a Seal Beach resident and member of the Los Angeles Medical Recruiting Command, based in Long Beach, was tried via General Court-Martial by a panel of officers sitting at Fort Irwin, California; he was convicted of one count of negligent homicide; one count of child endangerment by culpable negligence resulting bodily harm, and one count of Child Endangerment by culpable negligence resulting in grievous bodily harm.
His wife Linda Wilborn, 33 - originally the mother of 4 - is accused of beating to death their 22-month-old daughter, Millicent in December of 2009. The baby's twin brother had a fractured skull but survived.
According to police, Wilborn called 911 to report that her daughter was hurt. Millicent was rushed to Los Alamitos Medical Center, where she died from a ruptured heart. Doctors found that the toddler had fresh and old fractures to her ribs, and an examination of her twin brother revealed a fractured skull, according to the district attorney’s office.
The Court Martial panel of officers found that Wilborn knew Linda had been abusing the children prior to December, and that he negligently failed to prevent or intervene in their further abuse. A member of the Los Angeles Medical Recruiting Command based in Long Beach, Derrick Wilborn has been in the Army for more than 22 years. In addition to the 90-day detainment, the panel sentenced him to a demotion in rank. Derrick Wilborn is currently being detained at Fort Irwin.
The couple’s three surviving children were placed in protective custody following Millicent’s deaths.
To read more on the Wilborn's sentencing and rank reduction dates, click here.
A 2010 report by OC Weekly, broke the news of the conditions that authorities found the Wilborn children in: “Cops who'd arrived there for the 9-1-1 call found gnaw marks on a bedroom door jamb. The children would peel paint chips from the wall and put it in their mouths, and also tear up the carpet and eat that, too, the parents reportedly told police.”
Tell us in comments, was the sentence fair?
