Pontiac mother sentenced to up to 20 years in prison for abandoning 3 children

A Pontiac, Michigan, mother was sentenced Tuesday to as many as 20 years in prison after a judge sharply criticized her behavior and rejected arguments that outside failures, not intent, led to the neglect of her three children. 

Earlier this year, Teriomas Johnson entered a no-contest plea to three counts of second-degree child abuse. On Tuesday, Judge Yasmine Poles said Johnson's decisions, not her circumstances, put her children in danger.

"I think that you are a selfish liar," Poles told Johnson during sentencing.

Johnson's attorney argued the neglect was not intentional and instead pointed to what the defense described as multiple system failures. Those included Johnson's mental health struggles, lack of child support, and ongoing issues with government‑subsidized housing. The defense suggested intervention from outside agencies could have prevented the situation from escalating.

"I think if other institutions had gotten involved, not only CPS and done something, as well as the landlord, this wouldn't have gotten to this point," Johnson's attorney, Judith Gracey, said.

Poles rejected those arguments, noting Johnson had previously been on district court probation and had access to resources she did not use.

The judge said Johnson knowingly left her children in unsafe conditions and accused her of showing disregard for their basic needs.

Prosecutors said the case began after a 12‑year‑old reported a possible break‑in at an apartment on South Francis Avenue in Pontiac.

While deputies determined there was no break-in, they reported finding the apartment without running water and filled with human waste and rotten food.

According to prosecutors, Johnson had been staying with a boyfriend and returned to the apartment for only short periods, leaving her children alone for months at a time.

Johnson was sentenced to between 129 months and 20 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections. Judge Poles also ordered that Johnson have no direct or indirect contact with her children.

The judge said the sentence fell within state guidelines and reflected the seriousness of the neglect.