Mom Sentenced to Federal Prison in Connection with Death of Her Child

United States Attorney John E. Murphy announced that in El Paso this morning, 31-year-old Leesa Trujillo was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison in connection with the death of her 7-month-old child on August 10, 2009, on Fort Bliss.

In addition, United States District Judge Frank Montalvo ordered that Trujillo be placed under supervised release for a period of four years after completing her prison term.

On May 11, 2011, Trujillo pleaded guilty to one count each of involuntary manslaughter and injury to a child, and her co-defendant, 30-year-old Thelton Andres Riley, Jr., entered a guilty plea to one count of felony murder. Riley is scheduled to be sentenced at 2:00 p.m. on September 20, 2011 before Judge Montalvo.

By pleading guilty, Riley and Trujillo admitted that while living on the Laguna Indian Reservation in New Mexico beginning in June 2009, they engaged in a pattern of child abuse resulting in broken bones, namely the upper right arm, both legs, and several ribs. The defendants, along with Trujillo’s child, traveled to Fort Bliss on August 8, 2009, so that Riley could receive medical treatment at William Beaumont Army Medical Center. Riley and Trujillo further admitted that they never sought medical attention for the infant knowing that medical treatment for the infant was necessary and was readily available. Instead, Riley gave the child oxycodone and hydrocodone to keep the child quiet.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation together with the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted for the government by Assistant United States Attorney J. Brandy Gardes.