Woman gets 25 years in prison for killing son

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- A Bloomington woman was sentenced to 25 years in prison for killing her infant son.

Lona R. Griffin, 21, was convicted of first-degree murder June 21 in the suffocation of 1-month-old Joseph Robb. Her son died Jan. 23.

Before he handed down a sentence Friday, McLean County Circuit Judge Donald Bernardi told Griffin the case brought sadness to all involved.

"It's not going to go away when I do my job," he said.

Bernardi also ordered her to pay all expenses for burying her son.

Griffin could have received up to 60 years in prison. The child's father, Frederick Robb, asked for leniency.

"I go home every night to an empty house, where my family should be," he said. "I miss everyone, including Lona."

She originally told police she found the baby on the floor next to her bed, but later admitted to suffocating him while pressing him to her chest to quiet his crying.

Bernardi rejected a defense motion for a new trial. Griffin's attorney argued that she was in a weakened condition because of the birth and under stress from caring for Joseph and an older sibling.