Mother sentenced to time served for role in disposing of "Baby Doe's" body

BOSTON -- The mother of a 2-year-old girl who became known as "Baby Doe" after her remains washed up on a Boston Harbor island has been sentenced to time served and two years of probation for her role in disposing of her daughter's body.

Under the sentence imposed Wednesday, Rachelle Bond will be released from jail Friday after serving less than two years for being an accessory after the fact in the 2015 killing of her daughter, Bella.

Bond will be released directly into a residential substance abuse treatment facility.

Bond's ex-boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison. 

As part of her plea deal, Bond testified against McCarthy.

Rachelle Bond told jurors during McCarthy's murder trial that she in June 2015 saw McCarthy punch the girl in the abdomen so hard that she bounced off a bed at their home.  She said she drove with McCarthy to the waters off South Boston, where McCarthy disposed of the body.

When the child's remains were found in a garbage bag on Deer Island by a woman walking her dog, the girl was known only as "Baby Doe" for months amid a massive social media campaign to identify her. Three months later, Rachelle Bond told McCarthy's friend she saw him kill the child, and the friend notified police.

Bond said she didn't come forward about the crime sooner because McCarthy threatened her.

McCarthy's lawyer, however, called her credibility into question during the trial and told jurors in his closing argument that Rachelle Bond is a "monster" who killed her own daughter.

A prosecutor conceded that while she behaved "inexcusably" and kept silent about the crime for months, there's no evidence she killed her daughter. He said McCarthy killed Bella because he thought she was a "demon." 

After a 15-day trial, it took the jury of eight men and four women a little over 23 hours over the course of five days to convict McCarthy. McCarthy will serve his life sentence at Cedar Junction state prison in Walpole.

As a part of her sentence, Rachelle Bond is required to undergo a psychiatric exam and follow recommendations that may include substance abuse treatement. She also will be prohibited from taking drugs or drinking alcohol.