A Penn Forest Township woman was sentenced to a county prison term Thursday on a charge of endangering the welfare of a child.

Judge Steven R. Serfass sentenced Melissa A. Overby, 33, of Bear Creek Lakes development, to serve three to 12 months in prison followed by one year of probation.On June 2 a jury panel found Overby guilty of the charge after deliberating for less than 30 minutes following a one-day trial.State police at Lehighton charged Overby with leaving her then 6-year-old son home along over an extended period of time on June 30, 2013.At trial Overby claimed the child was left in a safe environment and was in no danger. However, when interviewed by troopers she admitted that is was poor judgment on her part to leave the child alone.Police said Overby went to New Jersey to retrieve a computer she said she needed for work. A neighbor testified on the day of the incident he heard a child crying and went to investigate.He said he found Overby's boy crying and yelling for his mother. He called police and stayed with the child until they arrived.During Thursday's sentencing proceeding Overby said she was going to appeal the verdict to the state Superior Court. She also claimed she had ineffective legal representation at the trial, argued information contained in a presentence investigation report prepared by the adult probation office was inaccurate and asked Serfass to continue the proceeding until the PSI report was corrected.Overby had four lawyers represent her during the process. Three were from the public defender's office and the fourth was appointed by Serfass as a conflict-counsel. Overby had problems with all her legal representation, claiming they were not representing her properly and not presenting her side of the case.She also argued that the recommendation contained in the PSI that a jail term be imposed was not in the best interest of her child, as she is a single parent.Serfass told Overby all the allegations she made concerning her representation, the fairness of the trial and another other matters she felt was not accurate could be appealed to the state court.Serfass also said he took into consideration the PSI, the testimony at the trial and his long association with the case in "fashioning an appropriate sentence."Assistant District Attorney Brian Gazo said the commonwealth agreed with the recommendation of the PSI that a period of incarceration be imposed by the court.In addition to the jail term, Serfass ordered Overby to render 100 hours of community service when released on parole, get a mental health evaluation, pay court costs of about $1,000, pay a $50 per month supervision fee while on parole and probation, and attend and successfully complete parenting classes.Serfass delayed the start of the prison term until Sept. 29 at 9 a.m. He said the delay was due to Overby's statement that she was going to appeal the verdict directly to the Superior Court. He said by the rule of court, she has 30 days to do that and the start date gives her the 30 days to file her appeal.Serfass continued her bail at $10,000 unsecured with the added provision that she must file the appeal to the Superior Court within the 30 days provided by law.