Kyndra Lynn Lee, the ex-wife of Christopher Fink, emerged teary-eyed from a 3rd District Courtroom Thursday, relieved that a judge did not send her to jail for malnourishing and kidnapping her son less than two years ago.
Instead, Lee was placed on three years probation, and ordered to have no contact with her ex-husband or be placed in a position of authority over children.
"I've lost so much, but I feel like it's over — I can go on with my life," she told the herd of reporters while struggling to fight back the tears. "I'm just so grateful because I was so scared. I know the pain of losing my children will never go away, but I know I can go forward."
Lee left the courthouse in tears surrounded by family and friends, ending another chapter in a media spectacle that began Sept. 19, 1998, when Lee and Fink took their 21-month-old malnourished son David from Primary Children's Medical Center. The couple's 16-day flight from the law sparked a nationwide manhunt.
Lee's sentencing Thursday afternoon closed the final chapter on a court case that has been followed at every turn. Much of Lee's story, however, remains to be written.
"She's begun to change," said Lee's defense attorney Ed Brass after Thursday's sentencing. "She's got a long way to go, but she needs to continue to change."
The change her attorney spoke of has come through counseling and learning not to allow herself to be "manipulated by men," Brass said.
"Kyndra Lee is a person who throughout her life has been psychologically weak," Brass told the court. "Christopher Fink had such a hold on her that when she was released from jail, from inside the jail, he could dictate to her how she dressed.
"She honored those (demands) because she had religious beliefs about his role as her husband," Brass added outside the courtroom.
Prosecutor Cy Castle wasn't ready to shift all the blame to Lee's ex-husband. Instead of probation, Castle asked Judge Roger Bean to send Lee to jail for 90 days.
"There were plenty of opportunities for Mrs. Fink to know what she was doing was inappropriate," Castle said. "It's the state's opinion that Mrs. Fink, too, is responsible for her behavior. She contributed to the serious condition that David was in."
David weighed 22 pounds when he was taken to Primary Children's Medical Center, Castle said. A pre-sentence report noted David has gained back his normal weight and even become "pudgy," Castle said.
"We really don't know what the consequences are going to be to David's recovery," Castle said.
Lee, 24, gave birth to the couple's second son, Elijah, during their 16-day retreat in the Montana wilderness before they were apprehended in a remote part of the Beartooth Mountains, about 48 miles from Billings, Mont.
Fink, also 24, pleaded guilty Nov. 3, 1999 to child abuse, a second-degree felony, and attempted aggravated assault, a class A misdemeanor, and was sent to jail for 18 months for his part in David's malnourishment and kidnapping.
Both Fink and Lee have lost custody of their children.
Fink and Lee were married Feb. 28, 1996 in Pocatello, Idaho, but Lee filed for divorce on Dec. 18, 1998. Commissioner Susan Bradford approved the divorce Feb. 4, 2000, and almost three weeks later, Lee pleaded guilty to one count of child abuse, a second-degree felony, and assault causing substantial bodily injury, a class A misdemeanor.
In addition to three years probation, Bean ordered Lee to pay $3,000 in fines, plus at least $100 in restitution to the nurse's aid who was injured trying to stop the couple from taking David from the hospital. Lee must also pay at least $342 in restitution to the state.
E-mail: djensen@desnews.com