A foster mother from Missouri, in the United States, was convicted for trading a teenager for an exotic monkey. Brenda Deutsch, 70 years old, was initially sentenced to seven years in prison for placing a minor at risk, but Judge Thomas Frawley, from Lincoln County, suspended the execution of the sentence and replaced it with three years of probation, allowing her to remain free subject to imposed conditions.
The magistrate also revoked Brenda's license to work in foster care and criticized the state of Missouri for allowing her to maintain the authorization to perform this function. Frawley classified the convicted's conduct as condemnable and apologized to the victims for a foster care system that, according to him, had failed them.
Brenda's biological daughter, Brina Johnson, who testified in the case, said the outcome was not what she expected, saying she was at a loss for words with the verdict.
