Babbitt man sentenced for stabbing girl, 3

VIRGINIA, Minn. (AP) -- A Babbitt man accused of stabbing a 3-year-old girl he was babysitting has been sentenced to more than six years in prison.

During the January incident, 28-year-old Derek Nathan Klingfus was also shot by a Babbitt police officer after holding a knife to the toddler's throat. He pleaded guilty last month in State District Court in Virginia to the second-degree assault of the 3-year-old girl.

The Duluth News Tribune reports the girl suffered a serious knife wound to her body. The St. Louis County Attorney's Office later ruled the officer's use of force was justified.

Defense attorney Bruce Williams says his client read a brief statement during the sentencing Thursday, apologizing to the young girl's family and the victim.