Pulaski County mother sentenced to life in prison after death of 5-year-old girl
WAYNESVILLE, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney announced on Wednesday the mother of a 5-year-old killed in 2023 was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty.
According to the prosecutor's official Facebook page, Sharmira Buford was sentenced on Wednesday after pleading guilty to Endangering the Welfare of a Child in the First Degree Resulting in the Death of a Child.
Buford was charged in March 2023 after a student reported the death of his sister, according to the Prosecutor's Office. Waynesville Police responded to the home and found the 5-year-old dead.
Police learned the adults in the home, Buford and Angela West, regularly disciplined the victim by tying her up with ropes, placing a sock in her mouth and covering it with Duct Tape, according to the Prosecutor. The cause of death was determined to be suffocation.
"This is one, if not the most tragic case, I have seen in my fourteen years as Prosecuting Attorney,” said Kevin Hillman in the social media post. “These were heinous acts perpetrated on a young and innocent victim over a long period of time and I commend Judge Beger for sentencing the defendant to life imprisonment for her role in this abuse and death of this child.”
Buford, the mother of the victim, and West were both charged with second-degree murder, first-degree involuntary manslaughter, abuse or neglect of a child – resulting in death and first-degree endangering the welfare of a child.
According to the prosecutor, West was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty in December to child endangerment of a child resulting in the death of a child. Online court records show the other charges were dropped as part of a plea agreement.
