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Pursuant to Ind. Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be regarded as precedent or cited before any court except for the purpose of establishing the defense of res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the law of the case. ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANT: CYNTHIA M. CARTER Indianapolis, Indiana ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE: STEVE CARTER Attorney General of Indiana MICHAEL GENE WORDEN Deputy Attorney General Indianapolis, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
TAMMY JACKSON, Appellant-Defendant, vs. STATE OF INDIANA, Appellee-Plaintiff. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. 49A02-0612-CR-1115

APPEAL FROM THE MARION SUPERIOR COURT The Honorable Grant W. Hawkins, Judge Cause No. 49G05-0305-MR-79353

October 2, 2007 MEMORANDUM DECISION - NOT FOR PUBLICATION DARDEN, Judge

STATEMENT OF THE CASE Tammy Jackson appeals the sentence imposed by the trial court after she pleaded guilty to one count of battery as a class A felony. We affirm. ISSUE Whether the sentence imposed by the trial court was inappropriate. FACTS 1 On the morning of February 21, 2003, Kevin Baugh took his wife Ellen to work and then took their eight-month-old daughter Hayliy to the home of her babysitter, Jackson. Hayliy was fine when he left her in Jackson's care, between approximately 8:15 and 8:30 a.m. Jackson had been babysitting for Hayliy for several weeks. At

approximately 10:24 a.m., paramedics and police were dispatched to Jackson's home. They found Hayliy in cardiac arrest. Pathologist Stephen Radentz conducted an autopsy, at which he found a "depressed semi-lunar, complex skull fracture" of Hayliy's head and other head injuries. (App. 39). Dr. Radentz reported that the injuries "resulted from the baby having been

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Jackson's Appendix does not contain the information. According to the CCS and the plea agreement, Jackson was charged with both murder and battery as a class A felony. Further, according to a statement by the trial court at sentencing, trial on those charges was well under way before Jackson agreed to the plea agreement. The PSI reports that for the battery offense, the State alleged that Jackson "did knowingly touch Hayliy Baugh, a person who was less than fourteen (14) years of age, that is: eight (8) months old, in a rude, insolent, or angry manner by forcefully striking the head of Hayliy Baugh against a hard surface, thereby fracturing the skull of Hayliy Baugh, resulting in the death of Hayliy Baugh." (PSI at 5). In the record submitted by Jackson, the only source of information regarding the events giving rise to Jackson's guilty plea is the probable cause affidavit, which provides the following facts about the incident.

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flung with tremendous force against a hard surface with some sort of an `edge' to it," such as "lifting the baby and flinging it forcefully in such a way that its head struck the edge of" a rounded countertop like the one in Jackson's home near where Hayliy had been placed. Id. Further, according to Dr. Radentz, "the severe impact to Hayliy's head in that particular area" would have resulted in her ceasing to breathe "within 20-30 minutes of suffering the fatal head injury." (App. 40). Dr. Radentz described the force of the blow as similar to "a child who had been struck by an automobile." Id. On May 16, 2003, the State charged Jackson with murder and battery as a class A felony. On December 20, 2004, Jackson and the State tendered to the trial court a written plea agreement, wherein Jackson agreed to "plead guilty as charged to Count II, Battery, a class A felony," and the State agreed to dismiss the murder charge. (App. 145). The agreement also provided that Jackson's "original executed sentence shall not exceed thirty (30) years at the Department of Correction[]." (App. 146). According to the CCS, a factual basis for the plea was established, the plea accepted, and judgment of conviction entered on that day. On January 21, 2005, Jackson appeared for sentencing. Ellen Baugh testified that she had chosen Jackson "to watch" and "take[] care of" Hayliy, but that as a result of Jackson's action, she would "never be able to see [her] daughter again." (Tr. 5). The State requested that the trial court consider as an aggravating circumstance Jackson's position of trust

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