Massachusetts Mother Sentenced After Leaving Sick 3-Year-Old With Young Siblings While She Went Out Drinking

A Massachusetts mother has been sentenced to four to six years in prison after admitting she left her seriously ill 3-year-old son at home with his two young brothers while she went out drinking — despite receiving repeated messages warning that his condition was getting worse.

Jennifer Prudencio, 28, pleaded guilty Tuesday to involuntary manslaughter and three counts of reckless endangerment in connection with the April 2024 death of her son, Yael Guardado-Prudencio.

Boston Superior Court Judge Joshua Wall imposed a sentence of four to six years behind bars, followed by three years of probation.

Yael Was Already Sick When His Mother Left

The case centered on Prudencio’s decision to leave her Chelsea apartment on a night when she knew Yael was unwell.

Prosecutors said the 3-year-old suffered from a seizure disorder and hemophilia. In the days before his death, he had been vomiting blood and had also suffered a facial injury after falling during a seizure. Prudencio had taken him for medical treatment twice during that week.

Before leaving the apartment that evening, Prudencio later acknowledged that Yael had vomited and appeared pale.

Despite those warning signs, prosecutors said she left the toddler in the care of his brothers, who were just 8 and 7 years old at the time.

Prudencio went to nearby Revere, drank beer and later stayed overnight at her boyfriend’s home.

Her 8-Year-Old Son Kept Trying to Reach Her

As Yael’s condition deteriorated, his 8-year-old brother repeatedly contacted their mother.

The boy told Prudencio that Yael was not feeling well and was continuing to vomit. At one point, he sent her a video showing his younger brother visibly distressed and moaning.

Prudencio eventually replied that she would be home soon and instructed the 8-year-old to remain with Yael.

But prosecutors said she did not return for another nine hours.

By the time police arrived at the Spencer Avenue apartment Sunday morning, Yael was unresponsive. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Prosecutors told the court that the toddler had spent his final hours in bed beside his siblings while his condition continued to worsen.

Defense Asked Judge for Leniency

At sentencing, Prudencio’s attorneys urged the court to consider the abuse she had reportedly experienced during her own childhood.

Her defense argued that the case was a tragedy for everyone involved and asked the judge to consider rehabilitation as well as punishment.

There was no agreed-upon sentencing recommendation attached to Prudencio’s plea, and Judge Wall raised concerns during the hearing about how the case had been scheduled without that being made clear beforehand.

Ultimately, however, the court concluded that the circumstances warranted a sentence beyond the usual guideline range.

Judge Points to Aggravating Circumstances

The prosecution argued that several factors made the case particularly serious, including Yael’s young age, the circumstances surrounding his final hours and Prudencio’s responsibility as his mother to protect him.

Judge Wall agreed that those factors justified exceeding a sentence of three years.

Prudencio was sentenced to four to six years in prison. After her release, she will remain on probation for an additional three years.

The sentence closes one chapter of a case built around a devastating sequence of warnings: a sick 3-year-old left at home, two young siblings trying to care for him, and an 8-year-old repeatedly reaching out to their mother as his little brother’s condition deteriorated.