Lexington man sentenced to 25 years in prison over the death of a 4-month-old child
A Lexington man responsible for the death of a 4-month-old in 2018 was sentenced to 25 years in prison Thursday as part of a plea deal.
Brent Kelty, 32, was sentenced to 16 years for a manslaughter charge for the death of 4-month-old Landon Mayes, who died of head trauma. He received an additional nine years in prison for violating his probation terms after he had previously been convicted for felony drug trafficking.
Kelty was originally charged with murder and being a persistent felony offender. Kelty pleaded guilty to lesser charges of first-degree manslaughter as part of the deal in January, following court mediation. The persistent felony offender charge was dismissed, according to court documents.
Kelty’s attorney, Russell Baldani, said the mediation process was “long and arduous,” but he thought the plea agreement reached was a “fair resolution.”
Although Kelty offered no statements during the formal proceedings, Baldani spoke to the media and said his client is “extremely remorseful.”
“He didn’t offer a statement because nothing he could say would alleviate the pain of the woman whose infant has passed away,” Baldani said.
Lexington police investigated the death, but the attorney general’s office previously presented the case to a grand jury, resulting in Kelty’s indictment.
At that time, a spokesperson for Attorney General Daniel Cameron said representatives couldn’t comment on why the indictment came three years after Mayes’ death.
When the indictment was handed down, Kelty was already in jail on unrelated charges, according to jail records. Kelty had been convicted of several prior felonies in Fayette County since 2010, according to court records, which is what led to his indictment on a charge of being a persistent felony offender.
