BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A West Melbourne man has avoided a possible death sentence by agreeing to a 60-year prison term for the child-abuse death of a 3-year-old boy.
Joshua Manns, 30, pleaded no contest last Friday as part of a plea agreement with the State Attorney’s Office and was found guilty of second-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, child neglect with great bodily harm, and child abuse. Jury selection had been underway in Viera for his trial on first-degree murder and the other charges.
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Under the plea agreement, Manns’ sentences of 30 years each for aggravated child abuse and child neglect — and 26 years for child abuse — run concurrently with the 60-year sentence for second-degree murder.
Investigators and prosecutors determined that Manns and the boy’s mother, Erica Dotson, beat and abused toddler Jameson Nance over several months, inflicting injuries including a broken rib, brain swelling, and stab wounds. Jameson was 3 years old when he died in 2021.
An autopsy revealed Jameson died from severe, ongoing physical abuse, not accidental drowning in a bathtub, as Manns had claimed.
Dotson, 32, also faces trial on charges of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, and related offenses. Prosecutors say Dotson was involved or complicit in abusing Jameson and chose not to act to protect him.
Among the evidence against her: text messages recovered from phones belonging to Dotson and Manns that show the two fabricated cover stories, minimized critical injuries to the child, and chose to protect themselves rather than seek medical help for Jameson.
Doton was tried last summer, but a judge declared a mistrial.
A DCF investigator accused of failing to report the abuse avoided going to jail when she was put on probation.
Dotson is scheduled for a retrial on July 20.