Kristel Candelario gets life without parole in daughter Jailyn’s death after leaving the 16-month home alone while she went away on vacation.
Kristel Candelario, a 32-year-old Cleveland mom charged in her daughter’s death after authorities said she left the 16-month-old girl home alone for 10 days to go on vacation, has been sentenced to serve the rest of her life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Brendan J. Sheehan handed down his decision after an emotional hearing Monday morning.
“As a court, I have to remember Jailyn, where you did not,” Judge Sheehan said. “Just as you didn’t let Jailyn out of her confinement until she died, so too you should spend the rest of your life in a cell without freedom. The only difference will be that prison will at least feed you and give you liquids that you denied her.”
Judge Sheehan told Candelario she committed “the ultimate act of betrayal.”
“Leaving your baby terrified, alone, unprotected to suffer what I heard was the most gruesome death imaginable with no food, no water, no protection and lying in her own feces,” he said. “Miss Candelario, you know the responsibility of parenthood. You have a child already. You raised another child. I’ve witnessed here before me, your parents who’ve showed you love and respect and education. They came here to help you, to advocate for you. More than what you’ve done for your own child. The evidence that I’ve witnessed here before this court shows that this time you simply chose not to be here because you wanted to have fun. You decided you needed a vacation. What followed was absolute depravity. You left your baby, Jailyn, trapped in a pack-and-play without food and water for 10 days. This wasn’t simply an oversight. You could’ve saved Jailyn’s life many times. You could’ve found someone to watch her while you were gone. You could’ve taken her with you. While you were in Detroit or Puerto Rico, you could’ve called someone in Cleveland and told them that Jailyn needed help.”