Emelio Renova, Stephanie Byington and Racso Birdtail were sentenced in district court on Tuesday for their roles in the November 2019 death of 5-year-old Anthonio Renova.

According to court documents, the boy had been beaten and was malnourished when emergency responders were called to the 1200 block of 9th Street Northwest. The child died at the scene, according to court documents.

Renova and Byington are the parents and Birdtail was an acquaintance of theirs at the apartment in November 2019.

Judge Elizabeth Best sentenced Renova for a count of deliberate homicide to 100 years in the Montana State Prison with no time suspended with no eligibility for parole. She credited him for 980 days of time served.

Best sentenced Byington for a charge of accountability to deliberate homicide to 100 years in the Montana Women’s Prison with no eligibility for parole for the first 30 years and credit for 980 days served.

“You were an equal participant,” Best said.

Best said that making child stand with pumpkin pie cans for a length of time was something that would be “unbelievably torturous for an adult” and then beat the boy for urinating in his pants while he was being beaten.

Best said she took into account Byington’s history of mental health issues and having been abused previously.

She said she was not convinced that Byington or Renova understood their accountability for the death of their child.

Best also sentenced Byington for a charge of criminal child endangerment to 10 years in the Montana Women’s Prison with none suspended and no eligibility for parole.

Birdtail was sentenced for a county of assault on a minor by accountability to five years in the Montana State Prison with none suspended. Best said that he was less responsible for the child’s death though he had encouraged the abuse that night and done nothing to stop it. She said she found his expression of remorse more credible and that he deserved an opportunity to make amends.

Best also sentenced him to 10 years in the Montana State Prison with none suspended for the charge of tampering with evidence.

She credited Birdtail with 851 days served.

During the sentencing, Antonio Renova’s grandfather said he was heartbroken over the loss of his grandson and wanted justice for his death.

Emilio Renova said that he did care about his son and misses him.

Emilio Renova and Byington have criminal histories. Renova had been convicted in Yellowstone County for assault and robbery; Byington for endangering the welfare of a child and criminal possession of dangerous drugs.

Birdtail during the hearing that his life is also gone and “I’m sorry that I didn’t do anything as far as when that happened.”

Best said that in cases like this, “no one is untouched” and it impacts the entire community.

She said she was mindful that the defendants were impacted by neglect and abuse as children, but “nothing can explain what happened here. Nothing in my view can excuse it.”

Best said she had concluded that the three defendants in their own way, made the very short life of a child into one of misery.

The two most responsible, she said, were his parents, who instead of protecting him, “they tortured him, battered him, degraded, him and starved him and then they committed the crowning blow and killed him. This offense was heinous.”

Best said that “the evidence is clear to me that Tony’s death could never be considered an accident, or an oversight or a momentary loss of control.”