YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — A USS Fitzgerald sailor pleaded guilty to murder for killing his infant daughter with “karate chop-like blows,” and was sentenced Thursday to 15 years in prison.

The stress of providing for his family, his job and other factors led Seaman Lequae Caldwell, 23, to take out his anger on his crying daughter, 5-month-old Aviana, on Jan. 5, 2011, the sailor said while reading an unsworn statement at his Yokosuka court-martial Thursday.

Caldwell struck “the chest (her chest) with his hand using two karate chop-like blows,” according to court documents read by the judge. The blows ruptured his daughter’s heart, and she likely died within minutes after experiencing “air hunger,” according to medical testimony.

Caldwell said he initially denied striking his child to spare the feelings of his wife, Seaman Camellia Ngirmang, who served with him aboard the Fitzgerald.

“I lied because I couldn’t give my wife a dead child and a murdering husband at the same time,” Caldwell said.

Caldwell later admitted to the crime in a videotaped confession to Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents.

The military judge, Capt. David Berger, sentenced Caldwell to 21 years in prison. However, under the rules of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the lighter sentence in the plea agreement takes precedence over the judge’s ruling.

Caldwell will receive credit for 407 days of time already served at the Yokosuka brig.

The accused told the court that he panicked after striking Aviana at his Yokosuka base residence. He tried giving her a cold shower in the hopes that Aviana’s shallow breaths would return to normal. Then he went to his computer to seek medical advice online. When he returned to his daughter, she was not breathing.

“I was afraid to go for help because I did not know how to explain it,” Caldwell said. “In the moment, I wanted to die as well. I wanted to jump off my balcony headfirst, but I could not leave my wife with no explanation.”

Caldwell said he attempted CPR. He then carried her out of the apartment and downstairs, where he ran into his wife in the Nanaban Tower parking lot, he told the court.

They went to the hospital, where Caldwell made up a story about his daughter’s fate. Medical officials later notified law enforcement authorities.

When Caldwell’s wife took the stand, she began weeping when asked to review 20 photos of Aviana.

“Is it fair to say that at the time of her death you considered her your life, your reason for being?” asked co-prosecutor Lt. Cmdr. Andy Myers.

“Yes,” Ngirmang replied.

Co-defense counsel Lt. Adam Partridge asked Ngirmang if she loved her husband and hoped he could return home as soon as possible.

Ngirmang answered yes to both questions.

Following Aviana’s death, Ngirmang gave birth to a son, her second child with Caldwell.

Co-prosecutor Lt. Eric Nelson argued that for the protection of that son, Caldwell should be locked up for 25 years.

“All that potential, that vibrant young life … was ended at the hands of her father,” Nelson said.

Defense attorney Lt. Cmdr. Hayes Larsen recommended between five and eight years in prison, alluding to Caldwell’s anguish and sorrow.

“No one in this courtroom … will feel that more acutely than Fireman Caldwell,” Larsen said.

Caldwell, of Benton Harbor, Mich., also received a dishonorable discharge, reduction in grade to E-1 and forfeiture of all pay under the terms of a pretrial agreement, in exchange for his guilty plea.

So Sad.

Yeah, sad.

This is waaaay off topic, but husband & wife serving on the same ship? Is this common?

They met when she came to the ship, fell in love and then we transferred her off when they got married.
It is sad. When I used to see them out the father appeared to be shedding his problem child ways and maturing.
Just sad all the way around. His sentence is too light in my opinion though.

She was a beautiful baby. Her mother is in my prayers.

His sentence is too light in my opinion though.

Ditto.

He shouldn't be granted time served on the brig. He should suffer worse consequences.

I cant believe he got life!!!! So sad! And to think we have crazies like this living around us? Stress of providing for your family? that does not give you the carte blanche to handle your baby girl like that!

I think that I would disagree that he is necessarily a "crazy". I think that there is no doubt that he is an abusive father and deserves to be punished. But from what little of the case that I have read on this forum, I don't think that what he did was pre-meditated or intentional. He was just angry and stupid. A very dangerous combination, but not necessarily worthy of the same sentence given to those truly sick and incurable serial killer types. I just think that he is just one more example of why stupid people should not have children. I am actually very surprised that we don't see those morons on Teen Mom do things like this. Young people just have no idea that there are consequences for their actions. I hope that every parent in our community sees this and understands that they will be punished for their stupidity. Especially when it involves an innocent child.

Ughhhh Those girls on Teen mom do frustrate the heck out of me!!!! It just seems off the wall that your baby is crying and this is how you chose to handle it.,...not normal. it doesnt have to be premeditated, but thats when your rational side comes out and keeps your from doing the things you want to do deep down inside.

Just sad.

I want to preface my comment by saying that I in NO way condone what happened to this little girl. My heart aches for the mother, and for life tragically cut short. I do not know how I would survive if something to my sweet little girl.

That being said... This is such an unfortunate situation. I honestly do not believe that he meant to kill his daughter. Im not making excuses, because there is no excuse for what he did. But, I also feel like there aren't adequate resources or support here for young military couples. I understand that not everyone has problems, but a lot of domestic abuse happens on this base. Sailors are under a lot of stress, and babies, a family, a spouse, all add to that. These aren't excuses, but I wish there were more avenues for you g sailors to get help before something tragic happens.

When I had my daughter, I was fortunate enough that my mom was able to visit. She told me over and over and over again that there would be times when I would not beagle to get my daughter to stop crying, it's just part of being a parent. She told me to put her somewhere safe and walk away, take a shower, put headphones in, whatever I needed to do. Perhaps he didn't have the background I did, perhaps he didnt have someone to give him that advice.

I'm sure I'll get eaten alive for my opinion, and that's okay. I don't condone what he did, and I am glad he will pay for it. There is a mother who will never see herbaby girl grow up, will never see her start school, college, get married, or start a family of her own. Nothing will change that, no one can take that pain away. My heart bleeds for them. My heartaches for the girl who is buried who never had a chance, who was hurt by someone who should have protected her. I just also feel that the community could have done more to prevent a tragedy like this from happening.

Thanks for your honesty Navywife86. I cannot agree more with the main intent of your post. Overseas deployments for young couples can be very stressful and perhaps that is a major part of the tragic story of Avaina Caldwell. I only partially agree with a main point of your post, however. Particularly that there aren't quite the resources that will smack a hung couple in the face like there are in the States. Everything except residential treatment IS available here in Yokosuka, however. Did you know that every SOFA sponsored family is entitled to 10 visits to a licenced counselor at the Fleet and Family Service Center for absolutely no cost? Did you know that a Chaplin will see you at any time for free? The full suite of mental health services are also available at the Hospital. Fleet and Family Service Center also hosts Stress management, anger management, and money management seminars that were cancelled this month due to lack of interest from the community. And it is all free! My point is that most of the people in the Navy or thier dependants have no idea that they have access to all of these resources. If this sailor's wife, Supervisor, or friends had seen the warning signs and known of these resources, then perhaps we would not have seen this news article.

Some of those classes are a joke. I have been to the CASA class.... It did nothing for me. I went for the stress management portion. The woman who facilitated the class would not allow us to talk about anything "off topic". I am aware of the visiting nurse program, if you can get a ho,d of them. I couldn't. I also was unable to get a lactation consultant to contact me and ended up ceasing to breast feed due to a lack of support and information. I'm also about mental health resources, but for a deployed sailor, getting routine care is not always easy with their schedule. Again, I'm not making excuses by any means for what he did, but trying to look at what could be done better.

So yes, classes "exist", but they aren't necessarily really beneficial. Overall this was a tragic situation. Many factors contributed to Aviana's death, and nothing will change that her father is ultimately responsible. I just wish there were better resources available for those who need it.

I have a 5 month old baby girl and my heart aches that anyone could hurt a child. I am lucky that I have an easy going baby, but I have been around a few high demand babies and I have been told the same thing that navywife stated, that if you feel like your boiling over and can't handle it, it is better to just leave the room with the baby crying than let your anger come out. Crying never hurt a baby. So so sad.

It is a sad story and unfortunately happens all to often in todays day and age. I feel for the mother however I don't know how she could possibly still want her husband to return home. I could never forgive my husband for doing something like that and definitely wouldn't want him around the new child I just gave birth to.

I read alot of people comment on this post but they have no idea what went on in this situation, I know it might have hit home to many people but there is so much more to this story then you could begin to understand, I am Friends actually really good friends with Caldwell and his Wife, they were like brother and sister to me and my wife, and if you knew the man you would see he was not crazy I spoke with him on many occasions went to see him when he was locked up in the brig and went to see his wife while he was on lock down, now did it ever think to you that there was a reason why his wife still loves him , still wanted to be with him even after the incident, look sometimes people are made to say stuff that didnt really happen due to circumstance of trying to get a lighter sentence..........(Plea bargain) the man was innocent, the story didnt happen the way it was put out his daughter did pass yes in his care an when he was picked up he did get nervous but when the NCIS got involved in the emotional state he was in he said some things that hurt him that the man was not in the right state of mind, anybody would have made the same mistake after their child died, I know how much that little girl meant to him so please no need to attack someone that you have no idea the details about, only what you read, there is so much more to a story then what you read, but we are always so fast to point the finger, he who cast the first stone...........this man loves his family and I am sorry that this incident happened to their family, for those that say they know him and they thought that he put his childish ways behind him.......well you never knew them then only may have seen them because he was a well educated young man that stood by his family and was willing to stand up to anyone or anything for his family again why do you think his wife stood behind him in court ?  it is so easy to pass judgement why not just say okay I will pray for that family there are so many people hurt by this situation and all everyone wants to do is say oh he got what he deserved they should have locked him up for life, he did not murder his daughter, just because the article says murder , there are plenty of innocent people on lock down right now because no one has the facts, His daughter will forever be missed, and his son will always have his FRIENDS AND FAMILY taking care of him and his mother, there are alot of assumptions on this webpage, the man did not even have the proper representation for the case its so much attached to this incident, and after a while he just gave into it so that he could have hope of seeing his son one day. I will not talk anymore all I ask is that you have some type of consideration for his family if not him, the man was innocent and those that went to see him daily or that actually knew him and his family would know that, I have a son myself and I will be the first to tell you if anything happened to him I wouldnt be in the right state of mind, the man stayed in the brig for 407 days, what they failed to mention was that they offered him the opportunity to leave, but due to the fact that certain individuals where not there to help him he decided he wanted to stay in so that he wouldnt bring forth any more trouble that could increase his sentence, this man was harassed more then you will ever know, he did not want anything else to go wrong, and then when all else failed he took the plea deal because he didnt have any other avenue, if you were asked to choose between Life and 15 years what would you choose ? Especially if you realize you might have an opportunity to see you family again, stories are put here for a reason because some people see an incident and they dont understand the truth so you have to provide them with what they want to hear and not what they need to hear, society tends to get like that if there is a problem in the world the problem will cease to exist just a little more as long as we have a scapegoat to put the problem on, it just makes the situation a little better, dont want to go too much off topic but moral of the story is there is so so  so much more to this story than any of you will ever know.

Sieg, thank you for sharing.

look sometimes people are made to say stuff that didnt really happen due to circumstance of trying to get a lighter sentence..........(Plea bargain) the man was innocent, the story didnt happen the way it was put out his daughter did pass yes in his care an when he was picked up he did get nervous but when the NCIS got involved in the emotional state he was in he said some things that hurt him that the man was not in the right state of mind, anybody would have made the same mistake after their child died

When you say that people are "made to say stuff", you are wrong. They are put under pressure which is something that individuals that dont have a background with legal justice system get screwed over.

Everyone has rights. If you use them or not, its your own fault.

Military individuals have the right to Article 31. The right to remain silent.
Now how many ever have the courage, to redeem those rights when they are sitting in the hot seat is a different situation.
But they are still your rights.

Here is an excerpt:
"Many people don't know that as soon as they become a suspect their rights must be read to them before questioning. Article 31 of the UCMJ gave military people that right 16 years before the U.S. Supreme Court agreed in a case called "Miranda." The UCMJ provides that military suspects are also entitled to the services of a lawyer at no cost, regardless of rank or economic level. The U.S. Supreme Court did not guarantee that right to civilians until 12 years later, and only then if the accused could show he was needy."

The goal of Article 31:
Article 31 provides service members with a broad protection against being compelled to incriminate themselves.

What I would of recommended him to do:

So if your friend was read these rights and waived them, that is an entirely different story.

Its very simple. I would like to speak with my attorney. No no, your in the military, blah blah blah..
Once again. I would like to speak with my attorney. blah blah blah.. This is the 3rd time I am asking. I would like to speak with my attorney.

See how simple that was.

The text of Article 31 provides as follows:

a. No person subject to this chapter may compel any person to incriminate himself or to answer any questions the answer to which may tend to incriminate him.

b. No person subject to this chapter may interrogate or request any statement from an accused or a person suspected of an offense without first informing him of the nature of the accusation and advising him that he does not have to make any statement regarding the offense of which he is accused or suspected, and that any statement made by him may be used as evidence against him in a trial by court-martial.

c. No person subject to this chapter may compel any person to make a statement or produce evidence before any military tribunal if the statement or evidence is not material to the issue and may tend to degrade him.

d. No statement obtained from any person in violation of this article, or through the use of coercion, unlawful influence, or unlawful inducement, may be received in evidence against him in a trial by court-martial.

To which interrogators does Article 31 apply?

Article 31(b) requires a "person subject to this chapter" (UCMJ) to warn an accused or suspect prior to requesting a statement or conducting an interrogation. The term "person subject to this chapter" has been the subject of some confusion. If this provision were applied literally, all persons in the military would be required to give warnings regardless of their position in the command structure or their involvement in a case. It is clear from the legislative history, however, that Congress never intended a literal application of this portion of the Code. Basically, all military personnel, when acting for the military, must operate within the framework of the UCMJ. Thus, when military personnel act as investigators or interrogators, they must warn a suspect under Article 31(b) prior to conducting an interview of the suspect.

The warning requirement similarly applies to informal counseling situations conducted in an official capacity. Statements obtained from an accused or suspect would not be admitted in a subsequent court-martial unless the "counselor" complied with Article 31.

...prayers to the mother and new son, so sad...

Sieg - you are right that we don't have the whole story, and I think that a lot of people agree that it probably wasn't pre-meditated. The bottom line is that this person's actions caused his daughter to die. He is every bit as wrong about that as he would be if he had killed someone while he while driving a car intoxicated. Is he a monster? Probably not. But he needs to be held accountable for his actions.