A Long Island mother has pleaded guilty to the murder of her two-year-old twin daughters who were suffocated in June 2019.
Tenia Campbell, 28, of Medford, New York, pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder on Monday, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office.
She will return to court for sentencing on 25 January and is expected to receive 20 years to life in prison.
According to court documents, and the defendant’s admission during her plea allocution, Campbell’s mother called 911 on 27 June 2019 to report that her daughter was driving around in a family van and threatening to kill the two children.
Law enforcement launched a large-scale search for Campbell and her young daughters – Jaida and Jasmine – between the areas of Medford and Montauk, and the van was found at around 4pm.
Officers found Campbell outside of the van with the two girls found dead in their seats. Campbell later admitted to smothering the girls to death.
Tenia Campbell pleaded guilty to the murder of her two young twin daughters— (Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office)
NBC New York previously reported that Campbell got out of the minivan, walked to a nearby roadway and told a responding officer to “shoot me.”
Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone described the incident as "a scene you cannot imagine.” Speaking to NBC at the time he said: "As the father of three young kids, it’s unimaginable and beyond tragic — those two girls, Jasmine and Jaida, those beautiful young girls who lost their lives yesterday.
“Today in Suffolk County our hearts are broken."
In a statement issued on Monday following Campbell’s conviction, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A Tierney said: “This is such a sad and tragic case.
“Those two little girls looked to this defendant, their mother, for protection and love. Instead, she executed them.
“The defendant has one thing those twin girls will never have again: life. But now, this defendant will get to live out the majority of her life behind bars.”
