MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) — A plea deal has been reached in the case of the death of a Merced County girl four years ago.
Sophia Mason’s mother, Samantha Johnson, entered a plea to voluntary manslaughter, two counts of child abuse and two enhancements for causing great bodily injury in connection with Sophia’s death.
Johnson has been sentenced to 15 years and 8 months in prison.
Charges of murder and child abuse against Dhante Jackson, Johnson’s boyfriend, were dropped in October.
Jackson and Johnson had been living together when Sophia was reported missing in February of 2022.
In mid-March of that year, Sophia’s decomposed body was found in a bathtub at their Merced home.
Jackson spent time in prison on an accessory to murder charge, but was released in October 2025 after those charges were dropped.
