When Baltimore Circuit Judge Lynn Stewart Mays heard she was getting a case in which a 4-year-old girl died after being left alone in an apartment where a fire broke out, she figured the mother needed to go to jail “for a very long, long time.”

At sentencing on Monday for the mother, 26-year-old Brittany Montgomery, Mays spared her jail time, however.

“There’s always more” to the story, Mays said.

Montgomery, a single mother of three, left her three young children alone in the North Baltimore apartment, in the 800 block of Dartmouth Road, on Aug. 28, 2015, when a pan full of grease caught fire on the stove. Szki Wright, 4, died from smoke inhalation.

For that, Mays said, Montgomery needed to be punished.

But she noted that Montgomery had only been gone from the apartment five minutes as she visited a neighbor one floor above. She had no prior criminal record, and there had been no contacts with social services. By all accounts, Montgomery was a doting mother who made a mistake.

“At this point, the burden you have to bear is more than anything this court could do,” Mays said.

Montgomery was initially charged with manslaughter, and the Baltimore state’s attorney’s office had sought a sentence of five years in prison with all but three years suspended in exchange for Montgomery’s plea to three counts of child neglect. Instead, Mays said she was capping the possible sentence at 15 years in prison, with all but 30 days in jail suspended.

Assistant State’s Attorney Nicole Barmore said the cap was the “appropriate sentence” and also asked that Montgomery lose supervised visitation with her two surviving children that had been approved by a family court judge.

“Ms. Montgomery’s actions were criminal and deserve punishment,” Barmore said.

The father of the children had left weeks earlier, and Montgomery was raising the children — ages 4, 3, and 18 months — alone.

Defense attorney Gregory Fischer said Montgomery had visited a neighbor, leaving for periods of 15 minutes and 30 minutes. She had been gone again for five minutes when the fire broke out, and it is believed one of the children turned on the stove, Fischer said.

“I was supposed to make sure these things didn’t happen. I failed,” Montgomery told Mays.

With heavy smoke coming out of the apartment, Montgomery rescued her 18-month-old, then went back inside and saved the 3-year-old. She was unable to locate Szki, and, with the smoke intensifying, escaped.

Montgomery was “the only one with the courage and gumption” to brave the smoke inside the apartment, Fischer said.

Fischer said Montgomery was born to drug-addicted parents who abandoned her, and has struggled with mental illness. Szki’s death devastated her.

“She has indicated to me that she wishes she died in the fire instead of her daughter,” Fischer said.

In the years that have passed, Montgomery has been receiving treatment and attending parenting classes. Fischer said there would be no good sending Montgomery to jail and interrupting her treatment.

Montgomery had three character witnesses testify that she was a good parent, who had baby monitors set up to watch her children when they were out of sight. Despite cramped living space, she provided for her children and was a good parent.

Barmore asked each witness whether Montgomery’s apartment was cluttered with clothes and toys, and if she left out pans and dishes. They responded that she did her best.

In handing down her sentence, Mays said she has a relative with three children. Mays said the children were happy and taken care of, despite the messy appearance of the relative’s home.

Montgomery received a sentence of 15 years, with all of the time suspended, and was placed on five years of probation. That means if Montgomery violates her probation, Mays can impose any of the suspended time.

She also rejected the state’s request that Montgomery’s visitation rights be taken away while she is on probation.

jfenton@baltsun.com

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