Diabetic 4-Year-Old Dies After Mom Fed Her Bottles of Formula Mixed With Mountain Dew
(E.C. Nurre Funeral Home)
An Ohio mother, whose 4-year-old diabetic daughter died after being fed a diet primarily consisting of Mountain Dew, was sentenced to at least nine years in prison on Friday for the girl’s death. Tamara Banks, 41, pled guilty to manslaughter in March for the death of her daughter, Karmity Hoeb, who passed away in 2022 due to a diabetes-related brain injury.
Prosecutors revealed that Banks often gave her daughter bottles of baby formula mixed with the neon-green sugary soda, long after the child should have been weaned off bottles. Karmity died at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, just west of her Clermont County home, from diabetic ketoacidosis, as reported by the Cincinnati Inquirer.
The young girl had been exhibiting signs of a “serious medical issue” for days before her mother called 911. By the time emergency services were contacted, Karmity had turned blue and stopped breathing. Scans later confirmed that she was brain dead, prosecutors stated.
Prosecutors also charged that Karmity suffered from neglect and abuse for most of her short life, being denied proper nutrition and medical care. They found no evidence that she had ever been taken to a dentist, and her teeth had all decayed by the time of her death.
A 20-ounce bottle of Mountain Dew contains 77 grams of sugar, while experts recommend that children should have less than 24 grams per day. “This is one of the most tragic cases I have ever encountered,” said Clermont County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Clay Tharp. “This child did not have to die.”
Charity, affectionately nicknamed “Boogie” for her playful personality, was remembered as a smart and vibrant little girl. “She knew how beautiful and special she was … The camera loved her almost as much as she loved smiling real big and saying cheese,” read her obituary. “Each day she woke up full of joy and love.”
Prosecutors noted that Banks had a son who fell into a coma at 4 years old due to undiagnosed diabetes. Clermont County Common Pleas Judge Victor Haddad pointed out that this should have made her aware of the dangers of diabetes before her daughter’s tragic death.
“It’s hard to be a good parent, but you expect at least mediocre parents,” Haddad said at the hearing. “Not knowing what to do is not an excuse.” “I thought I was taking care of her,” Banks, who appeared in court in a wheelchair, said on Friday.
Despite her children’s suffering, prosecutors found that Banks regularly refilled her own prescriptions and even had doctors make house calls for her medical needs. Banks could face up to 13 and a half years in prison. Karmity’s father, Christopher Hoeb, 53, also pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and will be sentenced in June.
