D'Andre Lane sentenced to life in prison in daughter's death

By Roop Raj
Fox 2 News

DETROIT (WJBK) -- It was a dramatic day in court as the father of Bianca Jones was sentenced for killing his daughter.  D'Andre Lane had some angry words for the judge after he was told he would spend the rest of his life in prison.

"You have yet to bring any evidence forth that says my daughter is dead.  You have yet to bring any evidence forth that says I abused by child," Lane said during his sentencing Monday, adamantly defending his innocence.

As he was exiting the courtroom, Lane addressed Judge Vonda Evans by her first name and called her a liar.  Evans had Lane brought back into the courtroom where she chided him.

Earlier, the judge left no doubt why she picked a maximum penalty.

"This lie that you concocted because you were not man enough to face up to what you had done.  You disciplined that child, you tortured that child, and you should be ashamed of yourself," Evans told Lane.

Lane was convicted in October of killing his two-year-old daughter.  He told police that Bianca was in the back seat of his car in Detroit when a carjacker took the vehicle at gunpoint.  The car was found less than an hour later, but the girl was not inside.  Detroit Police joined forces with the FBI to bring about the investigation resulting in child abuse and murder charges now leading to life in prison.

Bianca's mother, Banika Jones, made two points in court, saying Lane was never abusive and that she doesn't think her daughter is dead.

"They've given me no proof whatsoever of my daughter's demise.  They've been able to demonstrate in no way, shape or form or fashion that she was hurt, harmed or injured.  All they have is she was sleeping and she didn't move," Jones told Fox 2.

In the end, Lane had one last chance to defend himself.

"My daughter is alive.  She is missing.  She will be found," he said.

"Your kingdom consisted of exploiting women, who you controlled, and children, who you excessively disciplined," Evans told him.

"We don't believe that anything was put forth in that trial to show that Mr. Lane is guilty, number one, of murder or child abuse in the first degree," said Terry Johnson, Lane's attorney.

You can likely expect an appeal on this conviction.  In the meantime, Bianca's mother says there is no sense of closure and she continues with the work of trying to find her daughter.