A 32-year-old mother in Indiana will spend more than two decades behind bars after her 4-month-old child died while left unattended for several hours in an unsafe crib just days after she and her husband had been visited by a state worker for leaving the victim alone in a hot car. Tippecanoe County Superior Court Judge Steven P. Meyer on Wednesday ordered Kelsey Harrington to serve a sentence of 25 years in a state correctional facility for her role in the tragic death of young Silas Perry, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
Kelsey Harrington (Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office)
Harrington in September pleaded guilty to one count of neglect of a dependent resulting in death for her son’s 2022 death.
Harrington’s husband, 30-year-old Joshua Perry, pleaded guilty in September to one count of neglect of a dependent and agreed to testify against his wife before she entered a guilty plea in the case. He is yet to appear in court for his sentencing hearing.
Joshua Perry (Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office)
Court documents obtained by Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR provided additional context about the final days leading up to the toddler’s death.
According to the report, the investigation into the couple began on July 24, 2022, when the couple left Silas unattended in their car outside of a CVS parking lot. The report stated it was 84 degrees outside and the child was covered with a blanket and left while the couple were in the store for about 13 minutes. A female patron reportedly heard the baby crying when she got out of her car and called 911 out of concern for the child’s safety.
One day after authorities responded to the scene, an employee with the Indiana Department of Child Protective Services went to the couple’s home where they reportedly found Silas in his crib sleeping “improperly.” The CPS employee noted that they reviewed with the parents the proper way to put Silas to bed — in the crib on his back with no toys, blankets, pillows, or other choking habits, as well as general rules to remember for an infant’s safe sleeping environment.
However, just a few days later, young Silas died as a direct result of his parents’ continued neglect.
Officers with the Otterbein Police Department on July 29, 2022, responded to a call about an unresponsive infant at an apartment complex located in the 700 block of East Oxford Street, which was the apartment where Harrington, Perry, and their son resided.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they found Perry sitting in a chair and holding the victim. Emergency medical personnel attempted lifesaving measures, but the boy was pronounced dead on the scene.
Police said both parents smelled like alcohol but swore that they had not left the apartment the entire night, according to a report from the Journal & Courier. However, surveillance footage obtained by police showed that both parents left the home at about 5 p.m. and did not return until about 9 p.m., per the report. The footage also reportedly showed that the couple didn’t call for assistance until after they had been home for more than 20 minutes.
Perry later admitted that he and Harrington had left Silas alone after laying him down in the pack ‘n play with his head resting on a pillow, WTHR reported. He reportedly said that when they returned home the victim was facedown on his stomach, blue, and not breathing.
“It’s unfathomable to me that a parent could leave a 4-month-old unattended for at least four hours, according to the police reports and the probable cause affidavit. In addition, going out smoking and drinking,” Meyer said during Harrington’s sentencing hearing, according to the Journal & Courier. “This mother and father chose their own selfish needs to go out and party and not take care of their 4-month-old.”
Meyer reportedly added, “This poor little boy was left unattended, ultimately led to his death. This whole incident didn’t have to happen but for the conduct of these parents.”
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