ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – After a jury deliberated for more than five hours Wednesday night, Omar Long was found guilty of manslaughter in the death of his 23-month-old daughter.
Long could face up to 30 years in prison for the lesser charge of manslaughter he received. He will be sentenced in January.
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Police said Long was asleep in his home when his daughter was found unresponsive in a car parked in the summer sun.
After testimony earlier Wednesday from a police officer who quoted Long saying, "I killed my baby," when learning his 23-month-old daughter was pronounced dead, the state rested its case in the manslaughter trial.
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Long rocked his head and cried as the medical examiner showed autopsy photos and told the court that 23-month-old Arianna had a temperature of at least 109 when she arrived at Flagler Hospital. The cause of death was hyperthermia -- extreme heat exposure -- and she had second-degree burns on her body.
Officers said Long reeked of alcohol when police arrived at his house.
Long was arrested in June on the manslaughter charge -- two weeks after the girl died.
St. Johns County Deputy Alana McGuire testified Wednesday that she was at the hospital when Arianna's mother learned of her death and confronted Long.
"'Why? I gave her to you. What happened. Why?'" McGuire said Nikki Anderson asked Long that day. "He just kept saying, 'I killed my baby. I'm sorry.'"
Prosecutors also called several of Long's friends, who testified that the defendant was out partying until 5 a.m. that morning, but despite drinking throughout the night, did not show signs of impairment.
Long has told police he did not know his daughter was strapped in a car seat in the back of the car when he took his wife to work that morning and then went inside to take a nap.
Defense attorneys said in opening statements that Long's sister-in-law called Arianna's mother and apologized for not taking any action when she heard the crying in the car.
On the witness stand Tuesday, the sister-in-law, Seritia Montgomery, denied that, saying, "I didn't hear her crying in the car that morning."
Long did not testify in his own defense Wednesday, but his attorneys did call witnesses that questioned how much Long had to drink the night before his daughter died.
Closing arguments were completed by 4:30 p.m., and the jury returned its verdict just before 10 p.m.
Many of Long's friends and family -- including another of his children -- supported him during the six months he has been held on $250,000 bond. They said it was a tragic accident that could happen to anyone.