Sharon Flanagan

Case information

• Name: Sharon Flanagan
• Role: Mother of the victim
• Legal outcome: Found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison without parole on December 8, 2013
• Victim: Steven Flanagan, 2 years and 3 months old

Timeline

• July 1, 2012 — Sharon Flanagan carried her 2-year-old son, Steven, into the Best Western in Green Tree at 6:18 p.m.
• July 6, 2012 — Steven Flanagan died after spending several days at Children’s Hospital.
• July 23, 2012 — The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide and Sharon Flanagan faced new charges.
• September 2013 — Sharon Flanagan was found guilty of first-degree murder.
• September 18, 2013 — A prosecutor described the case as revenge during a report before sentencing.
• September 19, 2013 — The defense rested in the trial; Flanagan testified in her own defense.
• September 20, 2013 — The jury found Flanagan guilty of first-degree murder.
• December 9, 2013 — Sharon Flanagan was sentenced to life in prison without parole; victim impact statements were read to Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning.
• December 8, 2013 — Sharon Flanagan received the sentence of life in prison without parole.

The offence

Sharon Flanagan drowned her 2-year-old son, Steven Flanagan, in a hotel bathtub. Steven died as a result of drowning; the manner of death was homicide. The events occurred at the former Best Western Parkway Center Inn in Green Tree, at the evening of July 1, 2012.

The prosecution said Flanagan killed the child because she was upset her ex-husband had been granted 70 percent custody.

Flanagan testified that she put her son in the bathtub that evening in about a foot of water so he could play. She said she became lost in thought and did not realize her son was in trouble in the water, then panicked, let the water out of the tub, and left the room to get help.

Investigation

The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Steven Flanagan’s death a homicide. In court testimony, Allegheny County Medical Examiner Dr. Karl Williams testified that he ruled the cause of death as drowning and the manner of death as homicide. Williams testified that he was not surprised to see little external trauma because the rush water into the child’s upper airways was enough to cause the heart to stop.

Police said Flanagan fled her hotel room, ran through the halls, clutching her abdomen, and shouted:

• “My baby, my baby.”

Pictures from Flanagan showed Steven’s ability to climb in and out of a tub at his West Virginia home and his ability to climb in and out of a kiddie pool, including to be able to push himself up in a moderate amount of water.

A tee-shirt which read:

• “I love mommy and mommy loves me” was found in Flanagan’s car.

The prosecution presented evidence that Flanagan searched online weeks before the incident for “leading cause of toddler death” and “why is Casey Anthony so popular?”

Arrest / custody status

Sharon Flanagan remained behind bars at the Allegheny County Jail at the time of the charges described on July 23, 2012.

Charges

At the time of facing new charges after the death was ruled a homicide, Flanagan faced:

• criminal homicide
• endangering the welfare of a child
• aggravated assault

During the trial, Flanagan was facing first-degree or third-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter or not guilty.

She was also charged with wiretapping because police said she illegally recorded her interview with detectives.

Trial

Defence position and witness evidence

The defence argued there was no evidence Flanagan held her son down in the Best Western hotel bathtub and argued that sometimes accidents happen and the evidence did not support a first-degree conviction.

The defence pointed to a lack of bruising on the body and argued that with little evidence of struggle, the drowning was likely an accident. Defense attorney Blaine Jones argued:

• “Forcibly drowning someone is an extremely violent act. There are no marks indicating he was held down. In the court of public opinion, she was guilty. But this is a court of law, sometimes accidents happen. The evidence doesn’t say there’s anything more.”

Flanagan testified on her own behalf. She admitted she lied to police when she claimed she couldn’t lift the child out of the tub, and said she left the bathroom, got distracted, and on returning found the child face down in the tub without trying to pull him out. She said she panicked, let the water out of the tub, then left the room to get help.

Flanagan testified that her marriage began to deteriorate when she found the child with her husband in a closet, and her husband was naked from the waist down. She claimed her husband molested the boy; prosecutors said there was no proof of molestation.

Flanagan testified she lied to police about trying to take the child out of the tub because she couldn’t bear the thought of the child going back to the custody of a “pedophile father.”

Defense attorney Blaine Jones offered no witnesses on Sharon Flanagan’s behalf.

After the verdict, Blaine Jones said:

• “It was an emotionally draining trial, and this was an emotionally draining event, as well. There simply are no winners in this, and it was a very difficult case.”

When asked about appeal rights after sentencing proceedings began, Flanagan shook her head “no” and nodded “yes,” and finally said to Judge Manning:

• “If you need me to say the word 'no,' no.”

Prosecution position

Prosecutor Lisa Pellegrini argued the case was not consistent with accidental drowning. She said:

• “This case is about maternal instincts. What would you do if you found your child face down in a tub? A small amount of water in the airways can stop the heart of a 2-year-old. He isn’t going to resist her. She is the one he believes would never hurt him.”

During testimony described in court coverage, Assistant District Attorney Lisa Pellegrini presented the allegation that Flanagan researched the Casey Anthony murder case in the days prior to the child’s death.

The prosecution argued Flanagan had too many different stories to be believed, and that she had searched online for “leading cause of toddler death” and “why is Casey Anthony so popular?” weeks earlier.

Judge

Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning presided over the sentencing when victim impact statements were read.

Evidence and victim impact statements

Steven’s father

Steven Flanagan’s father spoke extensively after sentencing. He brought a picture of the boy to court and delivered a victim impact statement while holding a large portrait of his son dressed for Halloween in a brown and white puppy costume.

He said:

• “It’s one of the most important pictures. It’s a picture that the church folks put together and brought to Steven’s funeral and it’s a picture of him at one of his first Halloweens and we dressed him up in a little doggie suit because he loved to crawl and he loved to climb. We got him right at the perfect moment when he was smiling and his little blue eyes open so it’s very priceless. It’s always on display in the living room. It’s on display under the Christmas tree now. The whole house is like a baby Steven shrine for sure,” he said.

When asked by KDKA-TV’s Harold Hayes what he would say to Sharon Flanagan if he had the chance, he said:

• “I’m not going to be ugly or nasty even though I’d have every right to do so. I’d just say, ‘Why?’ Because she had everything in the world. I mean we’re talking about an excellent marriage, beautiful child. She had everything and she had talents and abilities and I’d just say, ‘Why?’ That’s all I could think about saying because there was just no cause. There was no cause to run off and leave me and no cause for any of it from start to finish,” he said.

He described a conversation in their West Virginia home and said:

• “She had come up to our bedroom talking about killing herself and killing him, which is when I phoned the police and tried to get her committed for the second time and what I meant when I said nobody would listen is that finally, I got her to the point where the sheriff’s department took her in. There was an attorney, there was a mental health agency that reviewed her and they didn’t even bring her in before the judge. I mean they just let her go and that’s what broke my heart. Two weeks later, the court had given her partial custody and no matter what I did, after all she did, I had less custody of him than she did. Then, three-and-a-half months later she came up here and killed him,” he said.

He called Steven “a miracle baby,” and said it was conceived after two earlier miscarriages. He said Steven was vibrant and happy, very strong for his age, a great climber, and a “little hugger.”

He said:

• “We were as close as close could be. Our home was a true place of happiness. There was no cursing, no hatred, no bitterness, no hitting and no mistreatment of any kind,” he said.

He said that since Steven’s death, his mental, spiritual and physical health suffered greatly, and later said:

• “If it wasn’t for the Lord above and for people, I don’t think I would ever have made it.”

He called it a “privilege” to speak for his son and said:

He continued:

• “All I can truly say about it is why? There was no cause for it from start to finish.”

When describing his ordeal, he previously said Flanagan’s outburst and the court process were very difficult for him.

Dominic Netti / victim impact statement

Dominic Netti was staying down the hall in the same Green Tree hotel as Sharon Flanagan and her son. He lifted the lifeless body of the boy out of the bathtub and attempted to save him by performing CPR.

In his victim impact statement, Netti wrote:

“The terror and shear confusion that Sharon created in the hotel hallway, and the absolutely nightmarish scene of that little boy, laying facedown alone in that bathtub ... the look of disbelief that was frozen on his little face, with his eyes wide open and glazed over ...”

Netti wrote:

“Had his mother said that the boy was in trouble, we would have broken the door down. I could have smashed down 10 doors with the adrenaline I had surging through my body at the time, but, astonishingly, she didn't give us the chance. "

He also wrote:

“It is something we all still struggle with and will carry with us the rest of our lives.”

He reported having to be treated for post-traumatic stress disorder, and said his girlfriend also underwent counseling.

Sentencing

Sharon Flanagan was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

She appeared gaunt and dressed in a royal blue sweater. During sentencing proceedings, she said she had found out she would spend the rest of her life in jail and hollered out:

• “Please Judge Manning, please! I’ll serve any sentence, but I can’t spend time in jail.”

The judge told her to remain silent; she was removed before the end of the proceeding. She also mumbled something about abuse in prison, but her lawyer would not discuss that claim and said he had not filed any allegation of abuse with authorities.

Three statements were read to Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey A. Manning at sentencing.

Appeals / outcome

Sharon Flanagan was convicted of first-degree murder in September 2013 and remained convicted at sentencing, receiving life in prison without parole.

Other details

• Harold Hayes asked Steven Flanagan what he would say to Sharon Flanagan, and he responded with:
• The prosecution described Flanagan as 34 and of Inwood, W. Va., in court coverage and pre-sentencing reporting.
• A report described Flanagan as 33 in coverage about charges following the medical examiner’s homicide ruling.