The Kankakee woman convicted in the death of a four-year-old foster child in her care will be sentenced today in Livingston County.
A jury found Heather Lamie guilty of causing great bodily hard to Kianna Rudesill. The little girl died of injuries, which prosecutors, and the jury agreed, could not have been caused by the girl herself.

Lamie is facing natural life in prison with the conviction of the first-degree murder charge and up to ten years on the child endangerment charge. Both are felonies. The child endangerment charge would be an extended sentence because it resulted in the death of a child.

A relative of Kiaana's said no one won in this case. Bobbie Farley said after the conviction, "Thank God we got justice for Kianna and thank God for a state's attorney who finally listened to our requests."

The victim's family extended its appreciation to Livingston County State's Attorney Seth (Uphoff) and prosecutor Scott Ripley for giving Kianna a voice."

Uphoff said he believed the jury reached the correct verdict, with the evidence presented. He said the defense made the best case they could, but they still couldn't overcome the evidence presented in court.

The key to the verdict, the S-S said, was all the state's experts held a unanimous belief a child of Rudesill's size couldn't cause the type of injury that proved fatal.

94.1 WGFA