TRAVERSE CITY — Alyce Morales' sobs hung in a Benzie County courtroom as she told a judge that panic gripped her after she secretly gave birth to a daughter in a tent.
Morales, 19, of Cicero, Illinois, said she felt sorry every day since July 22, 2013, for what happened next. She closed her fist and struck herself before hitting her daughter, Marie, with a blow that fractured the infant's skull.
"I was in a really bad situation. I was alone and scared. I didn't think anything was going to happen, so I panicked," she said Tuesday. "I know that's not an excuse for what happened."
Nineteenth Circuit Court Judge James Batzer crafted a sentence that puts Morales in prison for at least 29 months, but also gives her a chance to clear her record. Morales pleaded guilty to manslaughter after authorities ruled the infant's death a homicide.
The plea agreement dismissed an original charge of an open count of murder.
Batzer's decision came after an emotional hearing in which Morales' attorney Jesse Williams argued his client's strict Jehovah's Witnesses background made her fearful she'd be shunned by her family because of her out-of-wedlock pregnancy.
"I really think that the life she led and the isolation she grew up with led to this tragic event," he said.
Benzie County Prosecutor Sara Swanson argued Morales' actions should have consequences. She said she spoke for Marie Morales, but pointed out she didn't have any stories to tell about the child and no pictures to show other than those taken at an autopsy.
"Although we don't have memories to share and stories to tell about her, her life still has value," she said. "She was only alive eight hours, and during that time she was beat and suffered. ... She died a very brutal death."
Swanson said Alyce Morales could have reached out to family, friends, counselors or even strangers if she felt afraid. She said Marie Morales' own cries for help were met with her mother punching and ultimately killing her.
But Morales' cousin Patricia Perales testified that the family's Jehovah's Witness beliefs may have left Morales feeling she had nowhere to turn for help. Perales said church elders and family members shunned her after she gave birth to her son.
"I do believe I know Alyce very well and her heart," she said. "I feel I can very relate to her mindset growing up in this religion."
Morales' aunt Elsie Vela testified that she felt their family failed Morales because they knew about the pregnancy. She pointed out that church elders were present at the campground when she went into labor.
"We never, ever thought she was that terrified, she was that isolated," she said.
Williams said the church members' presence explains what he found "most astonishing" about Morales' labor — that she didn't make "a peep" in the tent.
"You don't make a sound, why? Because the very elders that you're so scared of are present, they're all out by the campfire," he said. "You can't about this, you have to hold this in."
Williams pointed out all the sobs and tears in the courtroom came from Morales' family members, save two.
"Those two right there, her parents, are the only ones not crying," he said.
Morales' family members declined comment.
Batzer said isolation seems to be the "common denominator" in cases like Morales' in which a young woman killed their child. He said understanding Morales' fears of rejection and stress doesn't excuse her actions, or preclude punishment.
"Ultimately, there are no good answers," Batzer said. "What the court has done is impose a punishment on the defendant, but one that will allow her to move on with her life."
Batzer committed Morales to custodial supervision and training in Michigan's Department of Corrections.
Williams said Batzer granted his request for a sentence under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, which allows a judge to sentence a defendant, between ages 17 and 20, to prison or probation without a conviction.
Swanson said this sentence prevented her from commenting on what she thought about it.
"I really can't comment on it, because the records are sealed now," she said.