As part of a plea agreement with Cuyahoga County prosecutors, Kristel Candelario, 32, pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and child endangerment last month. In exchange, the prosecution dropped two murder charges and one felonious assault charge.
According to the authorities, in June 2023, Candelario went on vacation to Detroit and Puerto Rico, leaving her daughter Jailyn at home in Cleveland. She discovered the child in the playpen was not breathing when she came back ten days later, so she called 911. Shortly after arriving, emergency personnel discovered the kid was "extremely dehydrated" and declared her dead.
The Cuyahoga County medical examiner's office conducted an autopsy and found that the toddler's cause of death was acute dehydration and malnutrition.
Judge Brendan Sheehan of the County Common Pleas Court informed Candelario that by abandoning her baby without nourishment, she had done "the ultimate betrayal."
Sheehan stated, "You should live the rest of your life in a cell with no freedom, just as you did not let Jailyn out of her confinement." "The prison will at least provide you with food and liquids that you denied her," is the only thing that will be different.
Candelario, who has battled depression and other mental health conditions, claimed to have asked for forgiveness every day.
"I am in a lot of pain because of my baby Jailyn's passing," she said. "Everything that transpired has deeply affected me. I am not attempting to defend what I did, but no one realized how much pain and suffering I was going through. My daughter and God have both pardoned me.
According to the authorities, in June 2023, Candelario went on vacation to Detroit and Puerto Rico, leaving her daughter Jailyn at home in Cleveland. She discovered the child in the playpen was not breathing when she came back ten days later, so she called 911. Shortly after arriving, emergency personnel discovered the kid was "extremely dehydrated" and declared her dead.
The Cuyahoga County medical examiner's office conducted an autopsy and found that the toddler's cause of death was acute dehydration and malnutrition.
Judge Brendan Sheehan of the County Common Pleas Court informed Candelario that by abandoning her baby without nourishment, she had done "the ultimate betrayal."
Sheehan stated, "You should live the rest of your life in a cell with no freedom, just as you did not let Jailyn out of her confinement." "The prison will at least provide you with food and liquids that you denied her," is the only thing that will be different.
Candelario, who has battled depression and other mental health conditions, claimed to have asked for forgiveness every day.
"I am in a lot of pain because of my baby Jailyn's passing," she said. "Everything that transpired has deeply affected me. I am not attempting to defend what I did, but no one realized how much pain and suffering I was going through. My daughter and God have both pardoned me.
