Palmdale Woman and Boyfriend Sentenced to Life in Prison in Torture, Murder of Her Toddler Son

Brandon Jerel Williams, 27, was found guilty of first-degree murder, torture and assault on a child causing death; he was sentenced 25 years to life, the DA's office said.

Rosie Lee Wilson, 23, was sentenced 15 years to life after being convicted of second-degree murder and child abuse, prosecutors said.

The fatal beating of Wilson's toddler son, Anthony Wilson, happened exactly three years ago - on Aug. 21, 2014, the DA's office said.

The 23-month-old boy was beaten so brutally that he remained in a "vegetative state" until he died about two months later, in October, while being hospitalized, the DA's office said in a news release.

The toddler had faced abuse from his mother's boyfriend prior to being killed, prosecutors said. Williams would "frequently hit and scream" at the young boy, the DA said in a news release.

But that abuse had also turned physically violent before he was killed, prosecutors said.

Weeks before the fatal beating in August 2014, his mother found him limping around with several injuries after she left him with her boyfriend, prosecutors said.

She left her son alone with her boyfriend again on the day he was fatally beaten, prosecutors said. Later, when she returned that day, she found the boy with "massive bruising" all over his body including in his head and groin areas, the DA's office said in a news release.

Wilson did not take her son to the hospital until the following afternoon, prosecutors said. She tried to conceal her son's injuries with make-up and baby powder, according to witness testimony, prosecutors said.

23-month-old Anthony Wilson and his mother had moved in with Williams just three months before he would be fatally beaten, prosecutors said.