‘Horrendous’: Babysitter gets life in prison for death of 5-year-old in her care

LAS VEGAS (KVVU/Gray News) - A babysitter in Las Vegas was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole for the death of a 5-year-old child who was in her care.

KVVU reports that 23-year-old Lauren Courtney could be granted parole after serving at least 20 years of her sentence. She also faced numerous counts of child abuse which were later dropped regarding the death of Ryan James Peralta on March 11, 2021.

According to court records, officers were called to the home of Ryan’s father around 1 p.m. that day on a report of a child being unresponsive with bruising to his head.

Authorities said Courtney was the child’s babysitter and had called the father to say Ryan was coughing up blood. However, the father returned home and watched surveillance footage which reportedly showed Courtney beating Ryan.

Police described the surveillance footage as a “horrendous account of what visually took place.”

The arrest report from Las Vegas police described Courtney dragging the child between rooms and repeatedly punching and kicking the boy in the head and body.

Ryan was taken to the University Medical Center. According to the arrest report, he suffered a brain bleed, skull fracture, fractured spleen and damage to other internal organs.

Officers said they interviewed Courtney at police headquarters. She told them that she babysat for the family three days a week and described the children as “usually good.”

Courtney reportedly told police that Ryan had an accident and needed to shower that day. While he was showering, she said she heard a “thud” and saw a bruise on his forehead when he was done.

The babysitter said she assumed he fell during the shower and his sickness later was due to the fall, the report said.

On the video, police said Courtney was seen dragging the boy into the bathroom after taking off his underwear.

After Courtney left the house that day, police said she made a Facetime call to her boyfriend at the time before deciding to pick up McDonald’s on the way home. He told police he recalled Courtney acting normal after getting home before police arrived to arrest her.

Police said when they confronted the babysitter about the surveillance footage, she continued to deny anything happened.

Eventually, Courtney told police she may have “blacked out” from anger, saying the accident by the child was “the final straw that triggered her anger.”

She blamed her blackout on having mental health issues and because Ryan would not listen to her.

“I know you are faking it,” police said Courtney could be heard telling Ryan in the video while he was unconscious.

During the interview with police, officers said she told them that she knew the father owned cameras inside the home. She later stated she was sorry and “would write a letter to the boy’s parents.”

According to police, Courtney had also insinuated that the father may have been abusing the child.