Sentence In Life Jacket Drowning

A man convicted of manslaughter for pulling the life jacket off a 7-year-old girl and allowing her to drown was sentenced to 20 years in prison Friday for what a judge called "one of the most cowardly of acts I have ever heard of."

Troy Lee Carlisle, 28, did not speak for himself during sentencing Friday before Circuit Judge George Ready. Carlisle was convicted October 11th of manslaughter by a jury and remains in a county jail.

Prosecutors had sought a life sentence in the case.

"I find his actions to be one of the most cowardly of acts I have every heard of," Ready said before sentencing. "I don't know how any reasonable man could have done what you did."

During the three-day trial, prosecutors played tape-recorded interviews in which Carlisle told investigators he knew 7-year-old Dallas Reinhardt would die.

Dallas's body was recovered following a two-day search of Arkabutla Lake in DeSoto County.

Kerri Peeples, the child's mother, asked Ready for the maximum penalty.

"No trial, no sentencing, no verdict could change anything," she said. "I am the loser. I've been the loser in this situation since May 7th. Dallas was the light of my life."

Outside the courtroom in Hernando after sentencing, Peeples said, "I consider him nothing…his excuses, his explanations nothing. I have yet to hear a 'sorry.'"

Dallas, her 4-year-old brother Garrett, her stepfather Kenny Peeples and Carlisle went fishing on the lake in Peeples' boat on May 7th. The children, wearing life jackets, jumped in the water for a swim.

When the two began drifting from the boat in a strong current, the men jumped in to pull them back. Kenny Peeples went for Garrett and Carlisle swam to Dallas. Neither had on a life jacket and Carlisle said he panicked after swallowing water.

Prosecutors claim Dallas would likely have survived had Carlisle not taken the life jacket to save himself.

Carlisle said in the taped interview, the child's jacket could not support the two of them so he decided to take it off her and wrap it around his arm.

"I was thinking I was gonna die or she was gonna die," Carlisle said. "I didn't really want both of us to die, so I figured I'd take it off her and put it around my arm…but she slipped out of my hand."