Las Vegas man sentenced in murder of 4-year-old boy
A Las Vegas man who in 2007 staged a car accident to cover up the death of his former girlfriend’s 4-year-old son was sentenced Tuesday to 17 years to life in prison.
Trevor John Carter, 24, in November 2009 pleaded guilty to second-degree murder by child abuse and three counts of child abuse for the death of Trenton Quick.
Quick’s mother, Amber Scott, 26, earlier this month entered an Alford plea to one count of child abuse and neglect with substantial bodily harm after reaching a deal with prosecutors. The Alford plea means Scott did not admit guilt but acknowledged that prosecutors could prove their case.
Scott is to be sentenced July 7 by Judge Douglas Herndon. As part of the deal, she faces a sentence of three to 10 years in prison.
Before Carter was sentenced, he apologized to the boy’s family and to his own family and accepted responsibility for his actions.
Carter crashed his car in the desert near Losee Road, about a mile from Las Vegas Beltway, one week before Christmas 2007. He told officers he wrecked while racing Quick to the hospital after noticing blood in the boy’s mouth. Carter told police he had taken the boy and his sibling out to target shoot.
North Las Vegas police doubted Carter’s story, and an autopsy confirmed the suspicions. The coroner ruled Quick died from blunt trauma to his abdominal area and had been a victim of prolonged child abuse. He was dead before the crash.
The coroner ruled Quick had 35 injuries on his body, many of which were caused before the crash.
In 2009, Carter admitted in court he struck Quick with belts and his hands. In one incident, he pushed the boy off a ladder.