NORWICH – A Norwich man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter charges spoke out on Friday morning, addressing the victim and her family, discussing the impact of drugs on an individual's lives, and declaring that he had failed as a dad.

Devan Ellsworth, 28, of Norwich pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter, a class C felony, after recklessly causing the death of his one-year-old daughter, Delaney Ellsworth.

According his indictment, the victim was struck on her face by her father, on August 26, 2018, in their apartment at 58 Henry Street in Norwich.

City of Norwich police later confirmed the child died while receiving medical treatment at Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse.

Throughout his sentencing, multiple people including District Attorney Michael Ferrarese, Ellsworth, and the victim's mother Bonnie Dalton spoke on the death of Delany.

"I never thought I'd have to stand in a courtroom for something like this," said Dalton. "He decided getting high was more important than his daughter, and now I've lost a daughter––there's no way to come back from here."

She said Ellsworth has ruined her family's lives, and that because of the ongoing court proceedings she hasn't had a chance to grieve.

When Ellsworth had the opportunity to speak, he apologized to Dalton and her family for what had happened, and said he only wanted the best for his children.

"None of this was intentional," said Ellsworth. "If I hadn't started using drugs again my daughter would still be alive today."

He said he had nothing but love for his daughter, and would trade his life for her's if given the opportunity.

"To Delany, I wanted to keep you safe from the world," said Ellsworth. "I miss you every second of every day."

He said he owed his children a better legacy than what he's accomplished so far, and that drugs shouldn't be more important than children.

"Our children are worth more than the next hit," said Ellsworth. "...but our children don't know that because of our actions."

Ferrarese spoke on Delany's death as well and said only Ellsworth knows exactly what happened to cause the death of his daughter.

"There's not much to say after that judge. Devan knows he made a promise to Bonnie and his daughters, and that he completely failed to follow through on it," said Ferrarese. "In exchange for his plea, he'll receive three-and-a-half to seven years in the department of corrections, and Delany's family won't have to suffer through the trauma of a trial."

The DA said if a trial did become necessary, than the prosecution had 44 pieces of evidence showing Ellsworth's guilt, including interviews, audio recordings, and medical analysis ruling out his five separate versions of events. He added that Ellsworth had admitted to using methamphetamine on the day his daughter died.

"The issue is, I couldn't prove that he intentionally acted to cause the death of his daughter, but the evidence did show that he was either reckless or negligent," said Ferrarese on Monday. "Had a jury come back with a criminally negligent verdict he would have received two to four years in prison instead of three-and-a-half to seven years."

He said by getting him to plead guilty to the top count of the indictment and accept responsibility for his actions, the victim's family doesn't have to go through a trial, and Ellsworth was guaranteed prison time.

"Given his prior criminal history, I don't believe he will be released when he is first eligible for parole," said Ferrarese. "Along with his parole time, he's likely looking at closer to eight-and-a-half years in prison."

According to Public Defender John Cameron, Ellsworth accepted an Alford plea instead of taking a regular plea deal because Ellsworth couldn't remember all of the details of that day's events.

"The Alford plea had nothing to do with Ellsworth not taking responsibility for his actions," said Cameron. "We wanted to save his family from enduring the trauma of a trial, but we couldn't allow him to testify about things he couldn't remember."

He said the Alford plea was a middle ground that allowed Ellsworth to plead guilty without admitting to facts of the case that Ellsworth didn't know.

According to Ferrarese, a medical examiner who investigated the injuries Delany sustained ruled out every version of events Ellsworth told police, and said her injuries must have been caused by force from a human being.

Chenango County Court Judge Frank Revoir, Jr. said as a predicate felon, Ellsworth could have received seven-and-a-half to fifteen years in prison if convicted after a trial.

"Because you're accepting an Alford plea, I'm not going to go into the details of what allegedly happened," said Revoir. "Your Alford plea has the same legal effect as if you had went to trial and been found guilty by a jury of your peers."

Revoir said this case is one of the worst drug related tragedies he's seen.

"Unlike many of the people I've seen in this court, I've always believed that you have had a sincere desire to change," said Revoir. "This is your last shot, your life isn't over yet, and you still have the ability to make a difference."

Revoir said he hopes Ellsworth will do what he can to ensure others stay away from drugs in the future.