By Shereen Siewert
The father of a newborn child whose body was discovered wrapped inside a tied plastic bag and stowed in a vehicle was sentenced Wednesday to five years in prison followed by three years of extended supervision.
Allen Rice, of Milladore, was convicted Dec. 11 of moving the corpse of a child. As part of a plea agreement, charges of child neglect resulting in death were amended to the lesser charge and charges of obstructing an officer were dismissed but read into the record at sentencing.
The child’s mother, Marylinn Feher, 24, was was sentenced in December to life in prison after being convicted of first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the boy’s death. She will be eligible for extended supervised release after 30 years.
The charges were filed June 3, 2019, nearly two months after the child was found dead.
In a news release, sheriff’s officials said they were called at 10:11 a.m. on April 6, 2019 to Marshfield Medical Center for a report of a possible missing newborn child. Officers searched the parking lot and discovered the child, whose body had been wrapped in a bath towel and placed inside the plastic bag, inside the rear cargo area of a vehicle. The couple arrived at the hospital at about 2 a.m., allegedly leaving the baby in the vehicle.
The child was pronounced dead about six hours after being discovered. Autopsy reports showed he died of blunt force trauma.
Feher admitted in court she strangled the baby shortly after birth, which was also revealed in autopsy reports. Feher also admitted to striking the baby’s head on a toilet multiple times.
Wood County Circuit Judge Todd Wolf granted Rice 683 days credit for time served while awaiting trial.
