Couple Sentenced For Treating Nanny As “Slave”

A Massachusetts couple prosecutors say treated their nanny as a "house slave" for 13 years have been sentenced to a year of probation and ordered to pay the woman $150,000.

Martha Smalanskas and her husband Richard, parents of three from the town of Harvard, were sentenced Wednesday in federal court. They must pay restitution by Jan. 1 or face prison time.

The Boston Globe reports they pleaded guilty earlier to misdemeanor charges of violating federal labor laws.

Prosecutors say they brought the woman from her native Bolivia even though she was not legally allowed in the U.S.

She was paid less than $3,000 for the 13 years she cooked, cleaned, and cared for their children.

A defense lawyer said the relationship was more positive than described by the prosecutors.

[Associated Press]