Fairfield day care operator gets 2 1/2 years for baby's Benadryl death
FAIRFIELD, Connecticut (WABC) -- A Connecticut day care owner who allegedly killed a 4-month-old boy by giving him an overdose of Benadryl was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison and five years probation Wednesday.
Carol Cardillo pleaded no-contest to second-degree manslaughter in November, meaning she neither admitted guilt nor disputed the accusations. She pleaded not guilty to charges of reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a child.
Police say Cardillo operated an unlicensed day care facility at her home on Edgewood Road in Fairfield for 11 years and had purchased 90 bottles of Benadryl over a three-year span. Four-month-old Adam Seagull, of Shelton, had been in her care for 11 days when he died on March 22, 2016.
Seagull's death was initially ruled an accident from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but the state medical examiner found high levels of Benadryl in his system. His parents said they never gave permission to use the medicine. They spoke in court before the sentencing and outside afterwards.
"We don't believe that she intentionally meant to kill our son, but at the end of the day, she did," mom Michelle Seagull said. "And if she feels pain or sadness, then I'm glad. Because she is the reason that we're missing a member of our family for the rest of our lives."
Authorities said there was no signs of trauma, and Seagull had not been sick.
Toxicology reports revealed the Benadryl, and an autopsy concluded he died from acute diphenhydramine intoxication.
----------
