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Inset, left to right: Lilith Nova Burkhardt (Meeker Funeral Home) and Brian Moser (Law&Crime). Background: The apartment complex where Moser killed Lilith last year (WXIX).
A young man from Ohio, aged 23, is facing the possibility of spending over 20 years behind bars for his involvement in the tragic death of his girlfriend’s 2-year-old daughter. The little girl suffered physical abuse before she ultimately died from suffocation in her bed.
This Tuesday, Adams County Judge Brett Spencer sentenced Brian Moser to a term of 17 to 22 and a half years in a state prison. This sentence surpasses the initially proposed range of 15 to 20 years outlined in Moser’s plea agreement. Moser had admitted guilt to one charge of involuntary manslaughter and two charges of child endangerment relating to the 2025 death of 2-year-old Lilith Burkhardt.
In detail, Moser’s sentence breaks down to 11 to 16 and a half years for the manslaughter charge, accompanied by 3 years for each count of child endangerment, with all sentences to be served one after the other.
Before accepting the plea deal, Moser had been facing more severe charges of murder, which carried a potential sentence of 63 years to life in prison.
During the court proceedings, Moser expressed remorse, apologizing to the victim’s family and stating that the loss of Lilith has left him “traumatized” for life. He continued to assert that her death was accidental.
Prior to formally sentencing Moser, Spencer said deaths involving children are particularly affecting because they “represent pure vulnerability violated.”
“While our minor children only compose one-third of our population, they absolutely compose 100% of our future,” the judge said. “While the stipulated sentence is suggested to this court, this court will not be following that stipulated sentence.”
He continued, saying that “only maximum sentences would suffice in regard to any assimilation of fairness in this case.”
The victim’s father remembered Lilith as a child whose light was “so bright” that it “filled every corner of her family’s world,” according to her obituary.
Cincinnati-based Fox affiliate WXIX reported that just days before Lilith’s death, Moser changed his name from Terri Smith III to Brian Moser, which is the name of a fictitious serial killer from the show “Dexter.” Prosecutors reportedly said the defendant changed his name because he “really likes serial killers.”
Lilith’s mother, Tien Hawkins, is also facing child endangerment charges. She is scheduled to appear in court for a change of plea hearing on May 8.