COEUR d’ALENE — A woman who pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter of her 5-month-old daughter will serve no time in jail and her charges could be dismissed if she adheres to the conditions of her probation.

First District Judge Scott Wayman withheld judgment Monday when sentencing Geneieve Dillon, 28, of Post Falls to two years of supervised probation, 100 hours of community service and roughly $945 in fees and fines.

“You have your whole life in front of you. You have been involved in a set of circumstances that can only be described as a tragedy ... for everyone who has been involved in this case,” Wayman said.

Dillon’s daughter, Karlie Mae, died in February 2016. An autopsy determined the cause of death was dehydration due to malnourishment.

“It’s still something you are going to have to live with for the rest of your life,” Wayman said to Dillon. “That is a life sentence that can never be changed.”

Deputy prosecuting attorney Alexis Klempel had recommended a sentence of 10 years in prison, with a requirement that Dillon spend at least three of those years behind bars.

The opinion of the forensic pathologist who performed the autopsy was that the child’s manner of death was homicide due to fatal neglect, according to an excerpt from the transcript of sealed grand jury proceedings provided by Klempel in her sentencing recommendation.

Klempel said that at the time of her death, Karlie weighed 9.8 pounds and was below the first percentile for her body weight when compared to other children the same age. At her two-month well-baby checkup the prior November, the last appointment she had with a medical professional, Karlie weighed 11 pounds 3 ounces. At 5 months, she should have weighed 15 pounds. Klempel said the baby also had severe diaper rash that went up her back because she was unable to fight off the infection in her debilitated state.

A grand jury indicted Dillon for felony injury to a child in May 2017, and the following month, Dillon entered an Alford plea to an amended charge of involuntary manslaughter. Under an Alford plea, a defendant does not admit to a crime but acknowledges the prosecution could likely get a conviction based on the evidence.

Defense attorney Zachary Jones asked Wayman for a suspended sentence or to withhold judgment.

“In this case, I think anyone who meets Gen will understand she is a sweet, kind, gentle, naive person,” Jones said.

Friends and family testified that Karlie did not appear to be sick and that she lost weight because she was teething.

Jones said Dillon, who has two other daughters who were removed from her care and sheltered by the state after Karlie’s death and are now in her care again, met the high standards of child protective services.

He also noted that Dillon functions on an eighth-grade level, “at best.”

“She just didn’t understand the gravity of what was happening,” Jones said.

Wayman said, in making his sentencing decision, he considered Dillon has no significant substance abuse or mental health issues and no criminal record. He said because of her experience with child protective services — which included parenting classes — it’s unlikely something like this will happen again.

“You may not be the smartest person on the planet,” Wayman told her, “but you’re not a bad person.”