LA PLATA, MD— Tony Covington, State’s Attorney for Charles County, announced that on Monday, June 22, 2026, Charles County Circuit Court Judge H. James West sentenced Joseph Michael Norman, 53, to 20 years in prison for the Involuntary Manslaughter of his two children, Brandon Myron Norman and Maddison Tanice Norman.
Norman pleaded guilty to the charges on June 9, 2026.
On August 26, 1997, Brandon Norman, Norman’s 8-month-old infant, was found unresponsive in his crib and transported to a hospital, where he was, unfortunately, pronounced deceased despite lifesaving efforts. An autopsy determined that Brandon died from complications related to blunt force trauma. Evidence obtained during the investigation showed that Brandon suffered a skull fracture in June 1997 resulting in subsequent seizures. Norman claimed the injury occurred accidentally when Brandon struck his head on a crib while the two were playing.
On September 5, 2001, Maddison Norman, Norman’s 3-year-old daughter, was found deceased in her bed by her mother. Investigators discovered an object in Maddison’s mouth, later identified as a red hair tie with two attached plastic balls. An autopsy determined that Maddison died as a result of asphyxia.
Both children were in sole care and custody of Norman at the time their fatal injuries were sustained.
At the time of sentencing, Norman was already serving a life sentence stemming from a 2001 conviction for the First-Degree Murder of an acquaintance of his then-wife. Norman’s 20-year sentence will run concurrently with his existing life sentence.
At sentencing, the prosecuting attorney told the judge that the incidents were “unfathomable” and that “Late justice is better than no justice. Tragic doesn’t seem like a word great enough to express the magnitude of these matters.”
Sentence
C-08-CR-24-000643 – Involuntary Manslaughter
- 10 years
C-08-CR-24-000644 – Involuntary Manslaughter
- 10 years, consecutive to C-08-CR-24-000643
