CLERMONT COUNTY, Ohio — A 41-year-old Ohio mother was sentenced to at least nine years in prison — with the possibility of serving up to 13.5 years — after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the death of her 4-year-old daughter, who prosecutors said was fed primarily Mountain Dew through baby bottles, suffered severe tooth decay, and died from untreated diabetic ketoacidosis after her parents delayed seeking medical help.
Tamara Banks was sentenced May 24, 2024, by Clermont County Common Pleas Judge Victor Haddad. Her co-defendant and the child’s father, Christopher Hoeb, 53, later received a sentence of at least seven years (up to 10.5 years) after also pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter. Murder and child endangerment charges against both were dropped as part of the plea agreements.
Karmity Faythe Hoeb, known to family as “Boogie,” died January 25, 2022, at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Hamilton County Coroner’s Office records and prosecutors determined she died from diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening complication of undiagnosed Type 1 diabetes that causes dangerous acid buildup in the blood, resulting in a diabetes-related brain injury. She was pronounced brain-dead after hospital scans.
Prolonged Neglect and Diet of Soda
Prosecutors said Karmity suffered neglect and abuse for most of her short life. Banks and Hoeb, her biological parents and sole caretakers, denied her proper nutrition and medical care. Investigators found no evidence the child ever visited a dentist. By the time of her death, nearly all of her teeth had rotted or dissolved — a condition medical professionals refer to as “baby bottle caries,” caused by prolonged exposure to sugary liquids from a bottle.
Clermont County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Clay Tharp told the court that Banks routinely mixed Mountain Dew with baby formula and fed it to the girl through a bottle long after she should have been weaned. “Well, it turns out this 4-year-old was drinking Mountain Dew out of a bottle every day. So much so that it rotted all of her teeth out,” Tharp said. “This behavior was just so neglectful that it quite frankly led to her death.”
The child’s diabetes went undiagnosed and untreated for an extended period. Prosecutors noted Banks had prior experience with the condition: an older son of hers entered a coma at age 4 from undiagnosed diabetes in 2011. An older half-sibling, Jerry Banks, later told local media that during that earlier incident, Tamara Banks was unresponsive for roughly 36 hours while the boy deteriorated; Jerry said he had to wake her and insist she take the child to the hospital, where doctors intervened in time.
Final Days and Delayed 911 Call
In January 2022, while at home in Union Township, Karmity began showing signs of a “serious medical issue,” prosecutors said. Her condition worsened over several days. Banks and Hoeb did not call 911 until the girl turned blue and stopped breathing. First responders revived her briefly, but she remained unresponsive. She was transported to the hospital, where she was determined to be brain-dead and taken off life support days later (reports vary slightly between January 24 and 25 as the date of death).
An autopsy confirmed the diabetes-related brain injury. “This child did not have to die,” Tharp said. “This is one of the most tragic cases I have ever encountered.”
Clermont County Prosecuting Attorney Mark J. Tekulve stated that “due to the neglect and abuse by her parents, K.H. suffered for a majority of her short life” and that her diabetes was “left undiagnosed and untreated over a long period of time.” He added: “K.H. did not deserve the fate she met. She did not deserve these parents. Banks and Hoeb deserve every minute in prison they receive.”
Court Statements and Sentencing
During her sentencing, Banks told Judge Haddad, “I thought I was taking care of her.” The judge responded that “not knowing what to do is not an excuse” and that while good parenting is difficult, “you expect at least mediocre parents, everybody should expect that.”
At his June 11, 2024, sentencing, Hoeb said, “A lot of carelessness and laziness is what caused this. It should never have happened. I am very remorseful for this.” He described Karmity as “my little angel” and said he wished he could have done more. His attorney noted Hoeb worked full-time and was not present for much of the day-to-day neglect but accepted responsibility. Prosecutors argued both parents shared culpability for the lack of medical care.
Ohio law allows the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction to extend sentences based on an inmate’s conduct, which is why the ranges extend beyond the minimums imposed by the judge.
Karmity’s obituary described a vibrant, silly little girl who loved looking in the mirror, smiling for cameras, playing with Mickey Mouse toys, and racing cars. Family and friends remembered her as full of joy. She was born December 15, 2017, and is buried in Plainview Cemetery in Newtonsville.
The case drew attention for the extreme nature of the nutritional and medical neglect in a preventable death. Prosecutors emphasized that proper diagnosis, treatment, and care could have changed the outcome. Both parents are serving their sentences in connection with the involuntary manslaughter convictions.
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