BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — A jury found a Baton Rouge mother guilty of attempted second-degree cruelty of a juvenile in connection with the 2021 death of her 2-year-old daughter, Nevaeh Allen.
Lanaya Cardwell, 28, was facing a second-degree cruelty to a juvenile charge during the trial. She was originally arrested on a charge of second-degree murder, which was later downgraded by prosecutors. Her former partner, Phillip Gardner, was also charged in connection with the case. Gardner was convicted last year and was sentenced to life in prison.
Allen was reported missing in 2021 before her body was found in a wooded area of Mississippi. Medical testimony during the trial detailed severe internal injuries and head wounds that the expert determined were inflicted on the day of the child’s death…