SAN DIEGO -- A mother of six children who smothered her newborn son while staying with relatives in Rancho Penasquitos was sentenced Friday to 11 years in state prison.

Julie Alison Reynolds, 37, pleaded guilty Feb. 5 to voluntary manslaughter. Judge Robert F. O'Neill handed down the stipulated sentence.

Reynolds had six children ranging in age from 18 months to 17 years old by three different men. The newborn was her seventh child by a fourth man, prosecutors said.

As part of her plea, Reynolds waived her right to have conjugal visits while she's behind bars.

"We don't want her having any more children while she's in prison," Deputy District Attorney Tracy Prior said at the time of the plea.

The defendant, who was originally charged with murder, was allowed to plead guilty to the lesser charge because she expressed remorse and accepted responsibility before a preliminary hearing was held, the prosecutor said.

Prior said it was still unclear why Reynolds smothered her baby hours after he was born. The defendant killed the infant by placing her left hand over the newborn's mouth. The baby's body was found last July 30 in a backpack in her bedroom closet.

Prior said Reynolds has a documented history with Child Protective Services in two states other than California.

The prosecutor said the defendant's sister and brother-in-law had welcomed the Colorado woman into their home a few months earlier so she could get her life back on track.