A 27-year-old Anchorage woman was sentenced to 18 years in prison with eight suspended Friday, more than three years after she shook a 6-month-old baby she was caring for who later died. Christina Moua was arrested by local police shortly after the May 24, 2010 death of Caiiou Xiong. Court records show she was accused of second-degree murder and manslaughter, but made a change of plea in July with prosecutors dropping the murder charge. Superior Court Judge Kevin Saxby approved that agreement Friday and imposed sentence, also including 10 years probation after Moua’s release.
Moua will be eligible for parole after having served one-third of her sentence. The sentence will credit Moua's time already served. At Friday’s hearing, defense attorney Jeff Robinson told the court that Moua has three children to care for and a dead husband, saying she also suffers from cognitive and mental issues that need to be addressed.
After the sentencing, prosecutor Paul Miova called Moua's sentence fair given Caiiou's injuries, Moua's mental status and the open question of whether the child's condition was directly attributable to Moua's actions.
Robinson recommended rediagnosing Moua. From the bench, Saxby observed that she had seen improvement under certain treatments, as well as trouble when she didn’t receive treatment. Moua spent much of the hearing rocking back and forth in her chair, with her hands quietly folded in her lap. Her attorney, public defender Jeff Robinson, reminded the court that Moua has no criminal record, suggesting that her mental issues may have been amplified due to misdiagnosis and clinical treatment.
According to court documents, Moua was caring for Xiong on May 21 after the boy’s parents, Cindy Yang and Ge Xiong -- Moua’s brother-in-law -- left him at her 7th Avenue home. When he started to cry, Moua told detectives she was scared and didn’t know what to do, so she grabbed Caiiou and shook him, then dropped him into a car seat from her standing height. When Caiiou’s parents returned, they found him with bruises on his legs and unresponsive. He was rushed to a hospital with a fractured skull and severe brain injuries, but died three days later after his life support was withdrawn, leaving behind only videos made by his family. Moua was initially held on $50,000 bail in the case, with a judge imposing an early bail condition on her -- that she have no contact with Xiong’s family.
Moua will receive both credit for the time she has already served, as well as eligibility for parole at a later date.
KTUU reporter Chris Klint contributed to this report.