In West Yellowstone, Montana, Patricia Batts, age 51, was sentenced to life imprisonment for her involvement in the death of her grandson, James Alexander “Alex” Hurley. 

District Judge John C. Brown passed the sentence following Batts’ guilty plea. 

Other family members, including James Sasser, Jr., her husband, were sentenced for their involvement in the crime. 

James Sasser, Jr. received a 100-year prison term in March 2022. 

The uncle of the deceased, 15-year-old James Sasser III, accepted his part for the fatal blow in the boy’s death in 2020 through a plea agreement. 

Batts, who once cared for Alex alongside her husband, faced charges of child endangerment and witness tampering. 

There were also attempts by her to have family members give false statements. 

While initially the death penalty was on the table, a subsequent agreement led to a 10-year sentence on both counts, in addition to her life sentence. 

Alex Hurley’s death, as per autopsy reports, resulted from blunt trauma, and videos documenting the abuse were deemed exceptionally unsettling by Judge Brown during the trial.