| Location | Peoria, Ill. |
| Age | 5 months |
| Cause of Death | Murder |
| Date of Birth | 27/08/2007 |
| Date of Death | 13/02/2008 |
| Visitors | 4,422 since 07/06/2009 |
| Creator |
Little Benjamin Sargent was left without food or water for eight days. He was found dead & secured in his car seat. When his body was discovered by police his eyes were staring ahead and fists clenched.
At a hearing for the parents, Tracy D. Hermann, 21, and James E. Sargent, 23, Kevin Lyons said, "It's the worst case of child neglect we have seen since the turn of this century." Lyons is hoping for the death penalty.
Both are charged with capital murder for their son's death. They could both serve 100 years for his death through their abandonment. He weighed 8 pounds at birth and weighed only 10 pounds at the time of his death.
**Update**
Sept 14, 2009 -
09/14/2009—Tracy Hermann admitted in a barely audible tone Monday she made a disastrous “mistake†last year when she and her former boyfriend allowed their 5-month-old son to go without food and sit in his own waste for several days, which eventually caused his death.
Hermann, 23, of 3012 W. Proctor St. apologized to everyone in the courtroom, saying she believed that her plea to first-degree murder and subsequent sentence of 50 years would allow her son, Benjamin, to finally have “justice.â€
She said little during the unscheduled plea hearing, speaking mostly from a prepared statement after Peoria County Circuit Judge James Shadid had passed sentence. Hermann will have to serve 100 percent of her sentence, meaning that with about a year and a half spent awaiting trial, she will get out of prison when she’s 72.
Few were in the courtroom, save the parties involved, Hermann’s parents and reporters. The hearing lasted only about 25 minutes and lacked the shock and the gruesome testimony that occurred in April when the infant’s father, James Sargent, was found guilty after weeklong bench trial.
He was sentenced to 100 years in prison, the maximum, for his son’s death.
Hermann’s attorney, Thomas Penn Jr., declined to comment, as did Hermann’s parents, who have been at all court hearings involving the couple since their arrest in mid-February 2008.
With her hair pulled back into a ponytail, Hermann looked younger than 23 and not like someone who was accused of acting in “brutal and heinous . . . indicative of wanton cruelty,†legal factors which pushed her sentencing range up to 100 years.
Yet, the facts of the case proved shocking. Authorities found Benjamin’s lifeless body, his eyes open, fists clenched and dried bubbly foam caked onto his mouth, in a car seat placed in his crib.
Reading from a seven-page statement, State’s Attorney Kevin Lyons said the infant’s diaper wasn’t changed for at least five days and possibly up to a week. He wasn’t bathed for about nine days. His last meal likely came three to four days before he was found, lifeless, on Feb. 12, 2008.
Prolonged exposure to that unchanged diaper caused his skin to be eaten away and allowed bacteria to seep into his body, causing his death.
One new bit of information was from a psychiatrist who had met with Hermann and Sargent in November 2006. At that time, the psychiatrist had warned Hermann that leaving another child of hers, then 14 month old, with Sargent unattended “wasn’t a good idea.â€
Lyons said after the hearing that Hermann’s sentence, half that of Sargent’s, was something that both sides could live with, adding that Sargent had taken a risk by going to trial. In Hermann’s case, she opted to plead guilty rather than risk a trial.
It was Sargent, not Hermann, who was the primary caretaker of Benjamin, Lyons said, noting that Hermann told police she was so stressed from working as a hostess at a local restaurant that she came home to “chill.†Sargent was the one who fed and cared for the baby.
Sargent had his own issues, including the disintegration of his relationship with Hermann and his own mental problems, which included a dissociative disorder, a condition in which he would assume a role from “The Lord of the Rings†and shut himself off from the real world.
**Update**
Jun 25, 2009-
James Sargent showed a "complete and total lack of remorse" for the death of his son last year, a Peoria County judge on Friday sentenced him to the maximum of 100 years in prison.
read the rest of update here:
http://www.pjstar.com/homepage/x135726492/Peoria-man-sentenced-to-100-years-in-prison-for-death-of-son
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
(¯`v´¯)
`*.¸ .*´
¸.•´¸.•*¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸ .•´ .•´ ¸¸.•¨¯`•.~~
"Little Angels"
When God calls little children to dwell with Him above
We mortals sometime question the wisdom of His love.
For no heartache compares with, the death of one small child
Who does so much to make our world, seem wonderful and mild.
Perhaps God tires of calling the aged to his fold.
So He picks a rosebud before it can grow old.
God knows how much we need them, and so He takes but few
To make the land of Heaven more beautiful to view.
Believing this is difficult, still somehow we must try.
The saddest word mankind knows will always be "Goodbye"
So when a little child departs, we who are left behind,
Must realize God loves children
"Angels are hard to find".
Time cannot heal the heartache or stop a silent tear, or take away the memories of one we loved so dear. RIP Sweet Angel Benjamin Sargent
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
Please Read -
Our page:
http://sites.google.com/site/endchildabusenowproject/Home/benjamin-sargent
Full File/Stats of Case:
http://www.peoriacountystatesattorney.org/practice%20develop.sargent-hermann.htm
A MySpace memorial:
http://www.myspace.com/benjaminsargent
♥ ♥............ New Year’s Reflections..............♥ ♥
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_***______WISHING_______***_
_***_______YOU___A_ _____***_
__***______HAPPY_____ ___***___
___***______NEW_____ ___***____
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______***___2012____ ***_______
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♥ ♥..................................Looking back on the months gone by,
As a new year starts and an old one ends,
We contemplate what brought us joy,
And we think of our loved ones and our friends.....................♥ ♥
♥ ♥................................................Recalling all the happy times,
Remembering how they enriched our lives
We reflect upon who really counts,
As the fresh and bright new year arrives.................................♥ ♥
♥ ♥............................................And when I ponder those who do,
Immediately think of you............................................................♥ ♥
♥ ♥.........Thanks for being one of the reasons I'll have a Happy New Year!...................................................................................♥ ♥
.................................By Joanna Fuchs.............................................
ALL MY LOVE TO ALL MY ANGLES
♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥
..★*˚�。�*。�*。★*˚�。�*。�˚�★*˚�。
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......( . • . ) ˛�./• '♫ ' •\.Ë›*./______/~ï¼¼*˚�。�*。�*�*â¤
....*(...'•'.. ) *˛╬╬╬╬╬˛�.｜田田â¤ï½œé–€ï½œâ•¬â•¬â•¬â•¬â•¬*˚�
Here's a festive greeting
Thats as special as they come
So from my family to yours,
May your day be filled with fun
And happy memories from yesteryear.
♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥
(( HAPPY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL HAPPY NEW YEAR .))
I would like to thank you all of you my dear friends for ever thing you do for my angles love you all big hugs. It helps to know you all care and love them too and understand to all of you are my support and help keep me going love you all for that take care all my love Sylvie bye for now.
♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥ ♥***♥***♥***♥***♥
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Thinking of you at Christmastime
You're in my thoughts today
You've only gone to Heaven
To watch over us each day.
Today we'll spend together
just like we always do
I'm sending Christmas Wishes
with love
from me to you.
Christmas blessings
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GOODNIGHT GODBLESS ANGEL ~
`♥ Christmas Without You`♥
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Christmas without you here with me,
can never possibly be the same.
But I carry an Angel within my heart;
one so precious, who has your name.
An Angel forever watching over me,
at Christmas time, and over the year.
Although you can't be here anymore,
inside my heart, you are so very near.
There is no special present for you,
wrapped up under my Christmas tree.
But I have a greater gift to give to you;
all the love you can still feel from me.
No, Christmas time without you here,
could not ever possibly be the same.
But, I have had the precious gift of you,
and the memories and love, will remain.
� Pamela Hall
All my love Sylvie
Dear Benjamin
Does heaven have a Christmas tree
for the little girls and boys
too far away for Santa's sleigh
to reach with treats and toys ?
A tree that's hung with moonbeams , stars
and real , shining angel hair
for the precious little children
who all live in heaven's care ?
And are you filled with wonder
at it's branches , all aglow
with the tears of those who miss you
on this earth , far down below ?
For we hope and pray you're playing
with the angels , having fun
but please don't forget , we love you
- HAPPY CHRISTMAS , LITTLE ONE .
HAVE A LOVELY CHRISTMAS WITH JESUS
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.|...\ ( â–‘â–‘â–‘â–‘â–‘â–‘ )/...|
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.......(â–‘â–‘â–‘)(â–‘â–‘â–‘)
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GOD BLESS YOU ANGEL~MY LOVE TO YOU ALWAYS~LONAxxx
"So soon I am done for, I wonder what I was begun for?"
Precious child, I would have walked barefoot thru hell to save you. I would have loved you and poured out my life for you. i would have taken you in and thanked God every hour for the gift of your life."
Hello beautiful boy
thinking of you again today and sending you lots of cuddles and kisses up to heaven !! I love you Benjamin Sargent xoxoxoxoxoxo
Happy Birthday little sweetheart
Sending you birthday hugs and kisses baby Benjamin !! Beautiful angel boy xxxooo
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