Attorney General Ken Paxton’s Criminal Prosecutions Division Secures 40-Year Sentence for Death of 5-Month-Old

BLANCO – Danielle Ivy Dechert, 27, pleaded guilty in the 33rd Judicial District Court of Blanco County, Texas, on August 30, 2024, to Injury to a Child – Recklessly Causing Death/Serious Bodily Injury and was sentenced to 40 years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

It was alleged in court documents that the Defendant, the biological mother of 5-month-old Rheylene Ledesma, became intoxicated by an illegal substance while “co-sleeping” with her infant and smothered Rheylene Ledesma to death. Further, the Defendant failed to provide any medical treatment or emergency aid for over eight hours while the child lay lifeless in the Defendant’s bed.

The Defendant’s punishment range was enhanced with a prior felony conviction for Evading in a Motor Vehicle and Endangering a Child from an unrelated criminal episode in 2014.

Texas Ranger Jose Rodriguez served as lead investigator while the case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Amanda Dillon and Assistant Attorney General Jamie Tillman, with assistance from Sgt. Brian Seales from the Office of the Attorney General.

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