The surviving daughters of a mother who has been imprisoned for strangling six of her children to death moments after they were born are standing by their murderous mom . Megan Huntsman , 40 , is facing life in prison after pleading guilty to killing the six newborns , then stashing their bodies in the garage of her home in Pleasant Grove , Utah . A judge today handed Huntsman six sentences of five years to life - but family members rallied round her even as her 'cold and calculated ' crimes were recounted to the court . Scroll down for video . Prison : Megan Huntsman , 40 , was today given six terms of five years to life in prison after admitting the murders . Three will run consecutively , which means she will spend at least 15 years in prison - and likely much longer . She is pictured today in court . Grisly : Investigators are shown above searching Huntsman 's garage , where a total of seven baby corpses were found in cardboard boxes . One of the children was stillborn - Huntsman strangled the rest . Huntsman , a meth addict , told police that she started killing off her children when she got pregnant because her drug problem meant she could n't care for them . Local reports from the courtroom told how Hunstman 's attorney took to the stand and read out letters from two of her daughters , who were born before her addiction began . The letters drew a stark contrast between the loving mother they say they knew , and the type of woman who would kill her own flesh and blood on six different occasions . Her mother , Joyce Huntsman , was reportedly in court - and took the stand to tearfully defend her daughter despite the heinous crimes . Discovery : Hunstman , left , was arrested after her estranged husband Darren West , right , found the bodies in her garage . West , who previously served time in prison , is not considered a suspect in their deaths . Scene : Her estranged husband found one of the babies ' bodies while cleaning out the garage at her Pleasent Grove , Utah home , pictured , in April last year . She told the court that the woman who committed the crimes was 'not my Megan ' . According to the KSL local news station , a detective recounted Huntsman 's cold and deliberate method of execution . Unwitting : West , pictured after the sentencing , is thought not have known nothing about the murders . The officer said Huntsman told she would take the babies in her hands when they were just minutes old . Then , he said , she would press on their necks with her thumbs until they choked to death . She would then put their tiny bodies in . Ultimately the corpses of seven babies were found - one of which was determined to have been stillborn . The crimes were uncovered by Huntsman 's husband Darren West - now estranged - who called police when he found the first body . The births and murders are said to have taken place from 1996 to 2006 . According to stunned neighbors when she was arrested , Huntsman was 'perpetually slim ' and they would never have suspected she was pregnant . The sentences handed down to Huntsman today were the maximum possible for her crimes . Three of them will be served consecutively - meaning she will spend a minimum of 15 years inside , and likely much longer . The sentence brings closure to a case that sent shockwaves through the quiet , mostly Mormon community where Huntsman stored the tiny bodies for more than a decade . The small city of Pleasant Grove is south of Salt Lake City .
Megan Huntsman , 40 , pleaded guilty to the six murders in February . Police said children , born between 1996 and 2006 , were alive just minutes . She would strangle newborns with her thumbs and hide them in garage . Two of her old daughters spoke up for their mom in letters read in court . Huntsman , from Utah , Pleasant Grove , was sentenced for her crimes today . Given six sentences of five years to life , three of which are consecutive . Means she will spend at least 15 years behind bars , and likely much longer .