Joycelynn Ann Dylewski died after prolonged neglect in a Corinth, New York, home.
CORINTH, N.Y. — A Saratoga County couple has been sentenced to prison after their 3-year-old daughter died from severe neglect that included an untreated lice infestation, poor living conditions and a lack of medical care.
Matthew Dylewski, 34, and Samantha Dylewski, 33, each received the maximum sentence of 1 1/3 to four years in state prison after pleading guilty to criminally negligent homicide in the death of Joycelynn Ann Dylewski. The case has drawn new attention in New York because prosecutors and lawmakers say the current penalty does not match the severity of a child neglect death.
Joycelynn died in February 2025 after emergency responders brought her to Saratoga Hospital. Officials said she was covered in lice and struggling to breathe when she arrived. Investigators later said her death was caused by acute and chronic neglect. Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Buckley said in court that the lice infestation led to anemia, and the anemia harmed Joycelynn’s heart and other organs before her death.
Authorities said Joycelynn had not been taken to a doctor for about 10 months, even though other children in the home had received medical care. Court statements also described severe dental decay and the presence of clonidine, a prescription drug used to lower blood pressure, in the child’s system. Officials said the medication had not been prescribed to Joycelynn.
Investigators described the Corinth home as unsafe and filthy. They said the home had flies, garbage, clogged plumbing and floors so dirty that boots stuck to them. Officials said the home was later condemned. The judge in the case described the conditions as deplorable and unsuitable for any child. The couple’s four surviving children were also the subject of court orders.
Saratoga County Judge James Davis sentenced Matthew Dylewski on June 22, after Samantha Dylewski received the same sentence earlier in June. Davis also signed orders of protection barring contact with the couple’s four surviving children until 2038. In court, Matthew Dylewski said he wished he had died instead of his daughter. Davis told him Joycelynn was completely reliant on her parents and that her death was preventable.
The sentencing prompted calls for a proposed state law named “Joycelynn’s Law.” State Sen. Jim Tedisco, Assemblyman Matt Simpson and Saratoga County District Attorney Brett Eby said the measure would raise the maximum sentence for criminally negligent homicide of a child to 20 years to life in prison. Under current law, the maximum sentence available in the case was 1 1/3 to four years.
The case now stands with both parents sentenced and barred from contacting their surviving children until 2038. Lawmakers said they plan to pursue the proposed sentencing change in response to Joycelynn’s death.
Author note: Last updated June 27, 2026.