LANSING — Photos of the injuries suffered by 6-year-old Levy Robinson four years ago were shown on a video screen in a Lansing courtroom Wednesday as the man who killed him stood before the judge for sentencing.
“He never woke up,” Ingham County Assistant Prosecutor Sarah Pulda told a judge, referring to Levy. She showed photos showing bruising and swelling on the Holt boy’s face and marks on his legs, as well as a zoomed-out photo of the unconscious boy lying in a hospital bed.
“This child never had a chance,” she said.
Surgeons had to remove part of the boy’s skull to relieve swelling in his brain, and both lungs were punctured, a doctor testified in 2021. A photo of a dent and crack in the wall created when Levy’s head hit it was also shown in the courtroom on Wednesday.
Minutes later, Ingham County District Judge Jim Jamo sentenced 34-year-old Quintiene Campbell to concurrent prison terms of 31.25 to 55 years for first-degree child abuse and premeditated murder.
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The minimum sentence was negotiated as part of a settlement in which Campbell pleaded no contest in June, settling a case that had been going on in court for years. In exchange, prosecutors dropped an open murder charge, four counts of first-degree child abuse and one count of third-degree child abuse.
A no-contravention plea is not a formal admission of guilt, but is treated as a conviction for sentencing purposes. The basis for his no-contravention plea was the possibility of a civil trial.
Campbell had asked on Wednesday to withdraw his objections because he had not received effective legal advice. Jamo rejected this request, saying the objections were made voluntarily and there was no legal basis to declare them invalid.
Campbell then read a lengthy prepared statement apologizing for his behavior and saying, “I have to make it up to you somehow, no matter how long it takes.”
Levy died about five months after Michigan Children’s Protective Services personnel closed an abuse investigation into him and his brother. CPS officials closed the case and left the family with a safety plan.
Campbell was the boyfriend of Levy’s mother. Levy died from an hours-long beating while in Campbell’s care and the mother was at work, according to testimony in Campbell’s preliminary hearing in 2021.
Levy was in a coma when he was hospitalized on August 16, 2020, and died two weeks later, shortly after his family took him off life support.
A medical examiner testified that Levy’s body was covered in bruises and snare marks. The boy’s cheekbone was broken and the bruises on his buttocks were fused together, making them indistinguishable, the doctor said.
“It’s not just a few hits and then you’re done,” said Dr. Stephen Guertin. “It happens over and over again.”
Levy’s seven-year-old brother had also been beaten, and Guerton said it was clearly not a one-time incident.
55th Circuit Judge Donald Allen called it one of the worst cases he had seen during his tenure.
Pulda told Jamo on Wednesday that the beating was punishment for “leaving a filthy basement” and not listening to Campbell.
Levy’s father, Michael Robinson Jr., told Jamo via video link that Levy was “a kind, compassionate” child who loved unconditionally and was “a shining light in our lives.” Campbell’s actions caused “immeasurable” pain and heartache, he said.
Jamo ordered Campbell to pay Michael Robinson nearly $6,270 in compensation for funeral expenses, even though those costs were covered by a crowdfunding campaign. Jamo stated that Robinson paid that amount into a fund intended to benefit Levy’s brother.
Contact Ken Palmer at [email protected]. Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj.
