An 8-year-old texted a horrifying video of his sick brother vomiting blood, but his mother chose her new boyfriend and drinking instead

Jennifer Prudencio is heading to prison for four to six years following the death of her three-year-old son. The 27-year-old from Chelsea received the sentence this week and will also serve three years of probation after her time behind bars, according to People. On that day, Prudencio pleaded guilty to manslaughter and three counts of reckless endangerment of a child earlier that same day. 

Prudencio had allegedly initially pleaded not guilty to charges of involuntary manslaughter in addition to reckless endangerment of a child after her arrest in April 2024. Furthermore, she is currently being held at the Massachusetts Correctional Institution Framingham. Her three-year-old son, Yael Guardado-Prudencio, had a known history of hemophilia and seizures, and had recently suffered a fall during a seizure. 

It’s alleged that it was the fall that caused a facial wound that was not healing properly. Prosecutors noted that the toddler was also throwing up blood in the week leading up to his death. However, Prudencio allegedly sought medical care for her son twice during that week, prosecutors said. The toddler appeared pale and continued to vomit on the night before his death.

You won’t know when you miss an important text

Prudencio chose to go to a bar in Revere, leaving the critically ill child at home under the care of his siblings, who were only seven and eight years old at the time. After leaving the bar, where she had been drinking, she spent the night at her boyfriend’s house in Somerville.

The situation escalated during the night when the eight-year-old reached out to his mother. He sent her a video of Yael and said he was concerned for his younger brother. Prudencio claimed she responded that she would be home soon. Prudencio allegedly turned home at about 10 a.m. on Sunday, and by that time, the young boy had already died.

Suffolk County prosecutor Audrey Mark commented on the incident, saying, “Despite that, she chose to stay out all night.” Suffolk Superior Court Judge Joshua Wall handed down the sentence without a plea deal, as prosecutors and the defense could not reach an agreement. Prosecutors argued that several aggravating factors warranted a term above the standard sentencing guidelines. The case comes months after a Utah couple admitted responsibility in their toddler’s neglect death.

Defense attorney Peter Marano argued for leniency at the hearing, describing his client as someone who was still a child herself when her son died. “She, at the time of this child’s death, was in essence, a child herself,” Peter Marano said. Prudencio is said to serve three years of probation after release, and her time behind bars could be shorter than the full term because the court credited her with 284 days already served.