In a harrowing case that has shocked the community, a Wisconsin mother has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the death of her daughter, who starved to death in a tragic neglect case. Amy Lascowitz, 43, was found guilty of recklessly subjecting her daughter, 23-year-old Cora Laskowitz, to abuse that resulted in her death due to malnutrition and dehydration.
Cora, who was diagnosed with severe autism, weighed only 70 pounds at the time of her death on January 4, 2023. This alarming weight was a drastic decline from her last recorded weight of 130 pounds in 2017. Emergency responders discovered her lifeless body in their home in Waukesha County, where she had reportedly not left since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020.
According to court documents, Cora’s mother, Amy, claimed she wanted to keep her daughter calm and did not seek medical help out of fear that it would upset her. Amy admitted during police questioning that she had not taken Cora to a doctor since 2017, despite her daughter’s rapid weight loss and deteriorating health. The medical examiner reported that upon examination, Cora’s body showed signs of severe malnutrition, with her hip bones protruding and her skin showing signs of dehydration.
During the investigation, detectives learned that Cora had missed school for over three years without any medical excuse, and her teachers noted that she had a good appetite while attending. Amy had used virtual appointments for Cora’s care, but the doctor involved in those consults stated that had they known of Cora’s actual weight, they would have insisted on an in-person evaluation.
Initially not charged with any crime after her daughter’s death, Amy was later arrested and charged with one count of recklessly subjecting an individual at risk to abuse causing death. She was released on a $10,000 bail but was brought back into custody when new evidence emerged regarding her neglect.
In January 2024, Amy entered an Alfred plea, which allows her to maintain her innocence while acknowledging that the state likely had enough evidence to convict her. The judge, while sentencing her, likened the state of Cora’s physical condition to that of victims from World War II concentration camps, emphasizing Amy’s failure to provide basic care for her daughter. The defense had argued for probation, claiming Cora could have accessed food independently, but the judge rejected this assertion and imposed a 20-year prison sentence.
Amy Lascowitz is currently serving her sentence at the Teta Correctional Institution in Waukesha County, with a projected release date set for March 2045. The tragic circumstances surrounding Cora’s death highlight the critical importance of adequate care and supervision for individuals with disabilities, and it has left a community grappling with the implications of neglect and abuse.