Joseph Davis sentenced to at least 15 years in prison for killing his 17-month-old stepson

Joseph J. Davis was sentenced to life in prison with a 15-year fixed term Thursday for the murder of his 17-month-old stepson, Maliki Wilburn.

A jury convicted Davis of first-degree murder in May. Coeur d’Alene police were called to Davis’ home on North Fifth Street in late August 2016. First responders reported that Wilburn was having problems breathing and showed signs of “obvious head trauma.”

Davis told police he had no idea what had happened to Wilburn. The baby died of his injuries two days later.

Davis will be eligible for parole after serving 15 years of his life sentence. Kootenai County Prosecutor Barry McHugh said his office had asked for a 30 year fixed term.

“While we respect the judge’s decision, we would have liked more fixed time,” he said.

Since the May guilty verdict, defense attorneys have been filing multiple motions asking for a mistrial, requesting a new trial and asking the judge to set aside the guilty verdict and enter a judgment of acquittal. The judge denied them all, McHugh said.

“There’s just a laundry list of things they were challenging,” he said.