HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015 09-15 Man admits he beat toddler to death PIONEER PRESS Man admits he beat toddler to death
Updated:0 9/1 5/10 1 5 0 8:48:38 PM COT TWIf1CItIBS.COfT1
As the state geared up to call a grand jury and indict him on first-degree murder charges,Leb Mike Meak pleaded guilty Tuesday to the lesser initial j
charge of second-degree murder in the beating death of a 17-month-old girl.
Meak's defense attorneys had urged the court to allow the original plea deal,offered in July,to stand,despite notice from the prosecution that it was
revoking that offer.
The prosecution told the court that Meak showed no interest in the original plea deal until he was informally notified that the state might seek a
grand jury indictment. �
On Tuesday,Meak was allowed to plead to second-degree unintentional murder as charged.
The state is no longer seeking to upgrade the charges,but will argue for aggravating factors,which can be used to request a heftier sentence than
usual.Meak faces up to 40 years in prison.
At his plea hearing,Meak admitted he caused the injuries that led to the child's death,according to the county attorney's office.
Specifically,he admitted he:squeezed her with both hands around the ribs,causing a rib fracture;hit her in the abdomen with a closed fist,causing
a liver laceration and other injuries;and threw her to the bed,causing her to hit her head on a wall.
A hearing Nov.9 will discuss aggravating factors and Meak will be sentenced Dec. 18.
Meak,35,was charged with murder in February following the death of his girlfriend's toddler daughter,Genesis Xiong.
Genesis'mother,Lia Pearson(also known as Lia Lee),37,was charged in April with child endangerment for her role in the girl's death.A
manslaughter charge was added Aug.30--what would have been Genesis'second birthday.
Pearson and Meak were dating,and the toddler had been staying with Meak for several weeks before her death.
According to criminal complaints,police were called to Meak's Maplewood home Feb. 12 on a report of a baby not breathing.
They found the girl had black and purple bruises covering her stomach and chest,along with bruises on her face.
Meak told police the girl had hit her head on a space heater the night before and on some of his weights about 1-1/2 weeks earlier,according to
charges.
He also said that"every time he changes her diaper,she does get a little spanking but not to the point where she'passes out or anything,'"the
complaints said.
Meak has two sons who lived with him;they said they heard their father hit Genesis and told Pearson about the abuse,according to charges filed
against her.
Pearson said in an interview with the Pioneer Press that she thought the boys were jealous and wanted Genesis to leave,so she didn't believe
them. I
The girl,who was not Meak's child,had been in Meak's care and was living with him because Pearson lives in Farmington and works in Burnsville,
she said.
She said she had seen some of the bruises but accepted Meak's explanations for how the injuries occurred.
Ramsey County prosecutor Karen Kugler had offered Meak a plea agreement July 15,saying he could plead guilty as charged and that attorneys
could argue a sentence within the state sentencing guidelines(between 10 2/3 and 15 years)at a later hearing.
She assured the court that the offer was not a one-day-only deal.
She did say the state would likely seek aggravating factors
After meeting with the medical examiner and reviewing the autopsy report,Kugler rescinded the offer and informed Meak's defense attorney that
Meak could plead as charged only if he agreed to a double upward departure--meaning a 30-year sentence.
The state sought the court's permission to seek an indictment.
In arguing for permission to move forward with the grand jury process,Kugler wrote to the court Friday saying Meak made no indication he was
interested in pleading until after he was placed on notice that if he didn't accept the second deal,the state would seek an indictment.
"He should not now be allowed to undercut the state's right to proceed with a grand jury,"Kugler wrote.
But Meak's defense--Carole Finneran and Rebecca Ireland--said the state should have communicated in July that its offer might change,they
wrote in their memo to the court Friday.
Meak,they said,"was told he had more time(to decide on accepting the plea offer).And he took more time."
The attorneys agreed Monday night that Meak could enter his plea Tuesday.
Elizabeth Mohr can be reached at 651-228-5162.