Michael McCarthy was convicted of second-degree murder in the death of ‘Baby Doe’ Bond

A the convicted of punching a little girl to death was sentenced  to life in prison on Wednesday for the slaying of Bella Bond, aka ‘Baby Doe’.
Michael McCarthy, who will be eligible for parole in 20 years, had been found guilty of second-degree murder by a jury on Monday.
A prosecutor asked the judge to set his parole eligibility at 25 years, 10 years more than the minimum. McCarthy’s lawyer said that request was “vindictive.”
In the end little Bella got justice in a crime Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley characterized as: “An innocent life was not merely snuffed out, but callously discarded,” Conley said

Initially unidentified for week after her Little  body washed ashore on a Boston Harbor island in June 2015. The 2-year-old was known for months as “Baby Doe” as investigators tried to figure out her identity. A computer-generated image of the child was shared by millions on social media. Neither her mom, Rachelle Bond, 40, nor her 37-year-old live in boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, stepped up to identify the missing child. They carried on a charade pretending Bella Bond was still alive.
Eventually her mother’s friend recognized the image and alerted the authorities.

Michael McCarthy, convicted in murder of two-year-old ‘Baby Doe’ whose body washed up in a trash bag in Boston harbor

Accused and charged with murder in the death of his girlfriend’s child, McCarthy did not take the stand in his own defense, but his recorded interview with cops declaring his innocence was heard by the jury.
After a plea deal, Rachelle Bond testified that McCarthy punched Bella in the stomach repeatedly until she died.
McCarthy’s lawyer countered that it was Rachelle Bond who was the “monster” and that the prosecution made a “deal with the devil” to put McCarthy on trial.
Bella’s biological father, Joseph Amoroso, gave a victim impact statement before McCarthy was sentenced.

The pain will follow me for the rest of my life – Bella’s biological dad, Joe Amoroso gave a victim impact statement before sentencing on Wednesday

“Bella was a gift from God who’s life was cut short at such a young age,” he told the court.
Amoroso testified during the trial that he never met his daughter.
“I was robbed of my chance to be a father to Bella, no verdict changes that,” he said.
Outside court, Amoroso told reporters he was happy McCarthy got life in prison, and that he had believed from the beginning that McCarthy was guilty.

Bella’s mother, Rachelle Bond [photo], a heroin addict, was not charged for murder but as an accessory after the fact. The court said she made mistakes and let her daughter down

Rachelle Bond, the prosecution’s star witness, said in her testimony that she saw McCarthy kill her daughter. She pleaded guilty to helping him dispose of her body.
She is due to be sentenced to time served on July 12, for her role in her 2-year-old daughter’s death in 2015,and will enter rehab upon her release.
Rachelle Bond’s sentencing was pushed back to a date when a bed in a rehab facility will be available for her. Both prosecution and defense agreed that it was best if Bond remained in jail until she could go directly into rehab.
Bond pled guilty back in February to being an accessory and to larceny as a result of her continued use of state benefits intended for her daughter.
Defense attorney Jonathan Shapiro ripped into Rachelle Bond’s testimony during the sentencing proceedings.
“We’re left not knowing what happened because what she said was clearly a lie,” he said.
He also called prosecutor David Deakin “vindictive…disingenuous, and cynical,” for which District Attorney Dan Conley said he “went a bit off the rails” and should be ashamed of himself.