A man in Montana has been sentenced to 80 years in prison for the horrifying murder of his 4-year-old stepson, Jaxsynn Gatlin, in 2021. Kristopher Michael Harasymczuk, 40, was convicted earlier this year and will now likely spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Sentencing and Charges
On Wednesday, Yellowstone County District Court Judge Collette Davies sentenced Harasymczuk to:
80 years for intentional homicide
15 years each for assaulting a minor and tampering with evidence
All sentences will run at the same time (concurrently). Harasymczuk was found guilty by a jury in March.
Mother Also Charged
The boy’s mother, Lana Marie Harasymczuk, 37, has also been charged. She now faces three counts of child endangerment and three counts of tampering with evidence. Her bond was set at $100,000, and if released, she will have to wear a GPS monitor and stay away from children.
Details of the Crime
The case began on October 22, 2021, when emergency responders were called to the family’s home in Billings, Montana. They found Jaxsynn unresponsive on the bathroom floor next to the tub. His body was already dry, but his skin was still unusually warm.
At the hospital, doctors pronounced him dead a short time later. An autopsy confirmed he died from hyperthermia, with his body temperature reaching 102°F. He also had bruises on his face and other signs of abuse.
The court also heard that the child may have died from blunt force trauma or head injuries caused by drowning.
What the Siblings Revealed
In interviews, Jaxsynn’s siblings told investigators that Harasymczuk abused all of them. The mother initially told police that her son had taken a bath alone and slipped. But she later admitted that her husband was in the bathroom before Jaxsynn’s death—and that she heard her son screaming before he died.
“This is the worst one I’ve been involved in for sure,” said Senior Deputy County Attorney John Ryan during the trial.
Detective David Raschkow added, “What happened to these kids is evil.”
