LEVELAND, Ohio — A 29-year-old father pleaded guilty today to killing his 9-month-old daughter with boiling water.
The plea meant Joseph Nemitz avoided the death penalty. He was sentenced for aggravated murder to 30 years to life in prison.
Assistant Prosecutor Anna Faraglia told Nemitz he was a “sorry, pathetic excuse for a father,” before he was sentenced by Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Carolyn Friedland.
The infant died Dec. 7, 2008, at a pediatric burn unit in Cincinnati. She had second-degree burns over her entire body. A coroner said it was the worst case she had ever seen.
The baby was burned Nov. 29, 2008, at Nemitz’s home in Mayfield Heights. Nemitz told doctors and police that he had accidentally burned her while giving her a bath. He then dressed her in a snow suit and called 9-1-1.
