Mother Who Left Toddler Home Alone for 10 Days to Go on Vacation Sentenced to Life Over Her Murder

Kirstel Candelario, 32, was sentenced Monday for the aggravated murder of her 16-month-old daughter Jailyn in June 2023

An Ohio mom has been sentenced to life over the death of her toddler after she left her home alone for 10 days last summer.

Kristel Candelario, 32, received a life sentence without parole on Monday for the aggravated murder of her 16-month-old daughter Jailyn, who died when Candelario went on vacation in June 2023, Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office announced in a press release.

The sentencing comes after Candelario entered guilty pleas in February for one count of aggravated murder in connection with the death of her toddler and one count of endangering children, according to online Cuyahoga County court records.

Related: Mom Who Left Toddler Alone for 10 Days at Home to Go on Caribbean Vacation Pleads Guilty to Murder

Candelario left her 16-month-old daughter unattended at her Cleveland home from June 6 to June 16, 2023, the prosecutor’s office added in its release.

When she returned to the residence at around 8:00 a.m., she found her daughter unresponsive and called the police, who later declared the toddler deceased at the scene. Jailyn was discovered “in a Pack-N-Play pen on a liner soiled with urine and feces with soiled blankets,” according to the release.

The toddler died of starvation and severe dehydration from pediatric neglect, Dr. Elizabeth Mooney, the deputy Cuyahoga County medical examiner, said in court Monday, per NBC News. According to Mooney, the 16-month-old was emaciated, "weighing 13 pounds, 7 pounds less than in her last doctor's visit less than two months before."

Related: Ohio Toddler Dies After Mom Allegedly Leaves Child Home Alone for 10 Days to Go on Vacation

Following an investigation, Candelario was discovered to have traveled on vacation to Detroit and Puerto Rico as she left her toddler at home. She was arrested on June 17 and charged with murder and related criminal offenses.

Cuyahoga County prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley said of Candelario’s sentencing, “Today, we remember Jailyn — a beautiful baby girl who was taken from this world due to her mother’s unimaginable selfishness. The thought of going on vacation for 10 days and leaving your child to starve to death in her Pack-N-Play is a new low in parental care.”

County Common Pleas Court Judge Brendan Sheehan told Candelario she committed “the ultimate betrayal” at her sentencing on Monday, per ABC News.

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Candelario, who according to the outlet struggles with depression and other mental health issues, said in response, "There's so much pain that I have in regards to the loss of my baby, Jailyn.”

"I'm extremely hurt about everything that happened. I am not trying to justify my actions, but nobody knew how much I was suffering and what I was going through ... God and my daughter have forgiven me."

According to local station WEWS-TV, Candelario was terminated from her position as building substitute at Cleveland Elementary School Citizens Academy Glenville after her arrest last year.

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