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Judge Sentences Newark Woman for Torture of Child

A judge in Essex County sentenced Patricia Buchan, 29, of Newark to 5 years in Friday after she admitted to scalding a 3-year-old boy she was entrusted to her care, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

According to officials, on Dec. 4, 2018, Buchanan admitted that the 3-year-old urinated on the floor in her son's room.

Officials say Buchanan admitted telling the child to take off his clothes, get in the bathtub and then took a pot of boiling water from the stove and poured it on the boy's lower body, resulting in second-degree burns.

Under the terms of a plea agreement, Buchan was to face up to five years in New Jersey State Prison. She must serve 85 percent of her sentence before she is eligible for parole.

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