Court sentences Sarah Fuson to 20 years for aggravated child abuse; 4 years concurrent on related count

A Tennessee court on an announced sentencing imposed 20 years in the Tennessee Department of Correction on Sarah Fuson for aggravated child abuse (count 1) and 4 years on a separate child-abuse count (count 2), the judge said, with the sentences to run concurrently.

The sentence followed a victim impact statement by Macy Hyde, mother of the injured child Olivia Hyde, who described bruising, disrupted sleep and ongoing therapy and asked the court to "remember that behind this case is a real child" and to reflect the "gravity of the suffering." The state offered the pre-sentence investigation compiled by Wendy James and relied on statutory enhancement factors in its sentencing memorandum.

Defense counsel Raven argued the court should impose the statutory minimum of 15 years for the class A felony, citing the defendant's lack of prior convictions, mitigation including a previous suicide attempt and a low-risk assessment on the presentence evaluation. "No sentence more than 15 years," Raven said, urging that some enhancement factors risk "double counting" and that truth-in-sentencing changes warrant caution in raising a sentence beyond the minimum.

The prosecution urged the court to apply enhancement factors for the defendant's position of trust, the presence of children at the facility when the offense occurred, and the victim's particular vulnerability, citing case law including State v. Adams in support. "This was a real crime whose effects will last far beyond 15 to 25 years," the prosecutor told the court.

In a detailed ruling the judge reviewed statutory sentencing principles (citing Tennessee Code Annotated provisions noted on the record), said the statutory language precludes treating the victim's age enhancement here, and found the position-of-trust and premises-related enhancement factors applicable. The judge explained that the court had observed the trial, reviewed the video evidence, and concluded the jury's guilty verdict on aggravated child abuse was supported by the record. The court stated, "the defendant should be sentenced to 20 years in the Tennessee department of corrections" on count 1 and to 4 years on count 2, concurrent.

Before adjourning, the court addressed a pending motion for new trial. Defense counsel said a skeleton motion had been filed and asked leave to amend after the transcript is prepared; the court granted an indigency order for transcript preparation, set a status hearing for May 20, and said the schedule could be adjusted if the transcript is delayed.

Exhibits received into the record included the pre-sentence investigation (marked Exhibit 1) and the victim impact statement (marked Exhibit 2). The court also signed an order declaring the defendant indigent for transcript purposes and gave the defense leave to seek a fuller motion for new trial after receiving the transcript.

The court adjourned the hearing.