A man who was surfing the Internet while his 13-month-old son drowned in the bathtub was sentenced to a year in jail Monday.
Tyler Bratsch, 25, pleaded guilty last month to manslaughter. He admitted visiting pornographic, sports and music sites and checking e-mail while his son, Logan, was in the tub.
Judge Don Spilseth also fined Bratsch $1,000 and ordered him to perform 1,000 hours community service and write a letter of apology to the emergency and hospital workers who tried to save Logan.
He must also write a letter of apology to Logan every year for the next five years on the anniversary of his death. And if Bratsch has another child, he must attend parenting classes.
Bratsch"s wife, Roberta, took the stand and tearfully pleaded with the judge not to send Bratsch to prison, saying he had been punished enough.
Bratsch told officers he put the boy in the tub around 1:30 p.m. and found him not breathing at 3:20 p.m. Court records showed Bratsch"s computer had been in continuous use for three hours until he found the boy.