Father gets 25 years in death of 1-year-old girl from malnourishment, dehydration
The parents of a 1-year-old Lancaster girl who died from malnourishment and dehydration in 2021 are both now in South Carolina prisons after a jury found the father guilty of homicide by child abuse, according to prosecutors and court records.
Judge Donald Hocker sentenced David Demias White Jr., 30, late last week to 25 years in prison for the homicide and six counts of child abuse and neglect.
The trial lasted over a week in Lancaster County criminal court, said prosecutors Melissa McGinnis and Randy Newman.
Shaquanda Page, 32, is serving a 27-year sentence for homicide by child abuse and child neglect after she pleaded guilty in September 2022. Prosecutors said Page pleaded guilty under what is called an Alford plea, where a defendant does not admit guilt but accepts a jury would likely find her guilty if the case went to trial.
Authorities said in 2021 the girl who died had not received any follow up medical care from the time of birth until her death.
