COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- A Colorado Springs mom will spend the maximum of 40 years behind bars after learning her sentence Thursday afternoon.
Christine Marie Hardy pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in death.
"This was an emotional case. Ms. Hardy's actions and her inactions make this sentence just. She had the ultimate responsibility for the life of her little girl," said prosecutor Frederick Stein.
Her daughter, 4-year-old Madyson Bogard, died Jan.15, 2008 of closed head injuries.
Prosecutors say Hardy's boyfriend, Mark Alton. repeatedly hit Madyson in the head.
He was convicted of first-degree murder in August of 2009 and sentenced to life in prison in September 2009.