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Carol Cardillo, 53, pleaded no contest to second-degree manslaughter in November, was charged last September in connection with the March 22, 2016, death of Adam Seagull, who died at her Edgewood Road home in Fairfield. Investigators said she had given the boy Benadryl before putting him down for a nap.
"This was a difficult and emotional case for all," said Assistant State Attorney Colleen Zingaro, who handled the case. "The sentencing saves the family from facing a trial. It's a good resolution to a hard situation."
Police said that Cardillo had denied giving Seagull Benadryl before putting him down for a nap, but the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined that he had Benadryl in his system when he died.
Records had shown that Cardillo had also purchased at least 90 bottles of Benadryl between Jan. 1, 2013 and May 24, 2016, the last one purchased a week before the infant died.
The son of Matthew and Michelle (Vasaturo) Seagull of Shelton, Adam was born in New Haven on Nov. 17.
On the day that he died, police received a 911 call at about 3 p.m. that day and responded to 63 Edgewood Road, where Cardillo lived, police said.
Cardillo told police she had given Adam a bottle around noon and then put him down for a nap in a play crib, according to Fairfield Deputy Police Chief Christopher Lyddy.
She found him unresponsive when she went to check on him around 2:55 p.m., Lyddy said.
Several attempts to revive the baby were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead at the hospital, police said.
Cardillo was caring for eight children ranging in age from 4 months old to 4 years old on the day Adam died, and there were four adults at the home, police said.
Zingaro said Cardillo was sentenced to 10 years, suspended after she serves 30 months, followed by five years’ probation. She is also prohibited from having any contact with children.
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