An Ohio mother has been sentenced to life in prison for the death of her 16-month-old toddler, whom she abandoned in their home alone for 10 days while she vacationed with her boyfriend in Detroit and Puerto Rico last summer.
Kristel Candelario, 32, received a life sentence without the possibility of parole on Monday for the aggravated murder of her daughter, Jailyn, who died in June 2023 while Candelario was away for over a week, according to a statement from the Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office.
In February, Candelario pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated murder in connection with her toddler’s death and one count of endangering minors.
Additionally, Candelario left her 16-month-old daughter unsupervised in their Cleveland home from June 6 to June 16, 2023, according to the prosecutor’s office.
Court records show that when Candelario returned home at 8 a.m., she found her daughter unconscious and alerted the police, who confirmed the toddler’s death immediately.
Jailyn was discovered “in a Pack-N-Play pen on a liner soiled with urine and feces along with soiled blankets,” as stated in the official statement.
Dr. Elizabeth Mooney, the deputy Cuyahoga County medical examiner, testified in court on Monday that the child died due to extreme dehydration and starvation resulting from pediatric negligence. According to Mooney, Jailyn weighed 13 pounds, 7 pounds less than her weight during her last doctor’s visit less than two months prior.
Following investigations, it was revealed that Candelario had taken a trip to Detroit and Puerto Rico with her boyfriend, leaving her baby alone in a playpen in their Cleveland home.