The verdict followed nearly two weeks of testimony about injuries, delayed care and blame between the child’s adoptive parents.

GREENSBURG, Pa. — A Westmoreland County jury convicted Lauren Maloberti of third-degree murder in the death of her 5-year-old adopted son, Landon Maloberti, after prosecutors said he suffered more than 100 injuries before he died in 2023.

The verdict ended the first major trial in a case that began when Landon was brought unconscious to a hospital and later died from blunt force injuries, including a severe brain injury. Maloberti, 36, of Delmont, was also convicted of two counts of aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy. Jurors found her not guilty of first-degree murder, a charge that would have carried a mandatory life sentence.

Jurors reached the verdict May 14 after about three hours of deliberations and after a trial that lasted nearly two weeks. Prosecutors called more than 45 witnesses over nine days, including pediatric child abuse experts, forensic pathologists, medical workers and detectives. The central question was not whether Landon was badly hurt. The courtroom fight was over who caused the injuries, who knew about them and whether medical care was delayed until the damage could not be undone. Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said the investigation was “a sensitive and complex case to navigate” and said Landon “deserved justice.”

The case moved toward trial after Landon was taken to AHN Hempfield on Jan. 30, 2023. Prosecutors said he arrived unconscious and was later transferred to UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, where he died Feb. 7, 2023. Medical testimony described bruises and injuries in different stages of healing, a detail prosecutors used to argue that Landon had been harmed over time rather than in one sudden accident. Doctors and child abuse experts testified about injuries to his head, face, arms, legs, back and abdomen. Prosecutors said his fatal injuries included major brain trauma and that one expert classified the abuse as child torture and medical neglect.

Defense attorney Adam Gorzelsky argued during the trial that prosecutors had not proved what happened inside the family’s home on the morning Landon became unresponsive. He said the case pointed toward Jacob Maloberti, Lauren Maloberti’s husband, who is also charged in Landon’s death and is awaiting separate court proceedings. Lauren Maloberti testified in her own defense and accused her husband of being controlling and abusive. She said she believed Jacob Maloberti beat Landon behind a locked bathroom door on Jan. 30, 2023, and then stopped her from getting help sooner. Jacob Maloberti testified against his wife and denied harming Landon.

Jacob Maloberti’s testimony gave jurors a rare view of a charged co-defendant turning against a spouse in open court. He told jurors he first thought Landon’s condition was medical and did not suspect his wife until after both parents were arrested. “The person I thought I was married to, I lost complete trust in,” he testified. He said that, after the arrests, he began to question what he had been told about Landon’s condition. Lauren Maloberti’s defense challenged that account and sought to make Jacob Maloberti the person responsible for the fatal injuries.

Text messages became a key part of the prosecution case. Detectives read messages exchanged months before Landon’s hospitalization. In July 2022, prosecutors said Lauren Maloberti wrote that she had “just got done beating” Landon. In another exchange from August 2022, she wrote that Landon “better behave,” and after Jacob Maloberti asked whether the child had said anything, she replied, “He’s going to get it.” Prosecutors presented the messages as evidence that abuse did not begin on the day Landon was taken to the hospital. The defense argued that the messages did not prove who caused the fatal injuries.

Prosecutors also presented testimony about the way Landon was treated inside the home. Witnesses said Lauren Maloberti appeared loving toward other children but treated Landon differently. Jurors heard allegations that he was isolated from others, monitored by a camera, sprayed with water, forced to drink from a toilet and made to search for food after bedtime. A relative testified that Landon was often kept on a couch in a corner of the living room during visits in late 2022. Another witness said Lauren Maloberti’s feelings toward the boy appeared to change after he entered the family’s care.

Landon’s path into the household became part of the larger story prosecutors told jurors. They said Lauren Maloberti took custody of the child in 2017 and later adopted him. Prosecutors argued that the abuse grew from emotional mistreatment into physical violence and neglect. Assistant District Attorney Adam Barr said in closing that the boy had been treated differently from the other children in the home. The defense said investigators focused too quickly on Lauren Maloberti and did not fully pursue other explanations. Gorzelsky told jurors that the prosecution could not prove exactly what caused Landon’s fatal injuries or when they were inflicted.

The verdict did not close the case. Jacob Maloberti still faces charges including criminal homicide, aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and conspiracy. His case remains pending and is expected to test many of the same facts, including the medical findings, the messages and the question of who had control over discipline in the home. Lauren Maloberti faces sentencing at a later date. Prosecutors said she faces a mandatory minimum sentence of at least 15 years in prison for causing the death of a child, and they could seek a sentence that keeps her in prison for decades.

Outside the courtroom, the verdict brought a measure of public finality for one defendant but left the family and court system with another trial ahead. Landon’s biological grandmother, Kathie Jo Sheffler, said “Justice was served” after the verdict. Gorzelsky said the defense would appeal and said he believed jurors were right to reject first-degree murder. Prosecutors said the jury’s decision followed a careful review of a difficult record. As of June 15, Lauren Maloberti has been convicted and awaits sentencing, while Jacob Maloberti’s case remains pending in Westmoreland County court.

Author note: Last updated June 15, 2026.