Lerenzo Legardy (Dona Ana County Jail).
A New Mexico man who took an extension cord and whipped his teenage stepchildren after he caught them playing with his Alexa device is headed to prison.
Lerenzo Legardy, 53, was sentenced on Thursday to three years in prison followed by two years probation, according to local Fox affiliate KFOX. A jury convicted Legardy in May on one count of third-degree child abuse in May, the Doña Ana County District Attorney”s Office said.
As a result of the beating, the kids were bleeding from the welts on their arms and legs. Prosecutors were still able to secure a conviction despite the fact that the court did not allow the victims to testify.
But their older brother did take the stand and his “courageous” account helped lead to a conviction and “deliver justice on behalf of his younger siblings,” prosecutors said.
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Jurors took just 20 minutes to come back with a guilty verdict.
“Our office is committed to ensuring justice be done and letting a victim’s voice be heard even when they themselves cannot speak,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Spencer Willson said in a statement.
Legardy’s wife Yvonne Legardy was also facing child abuse charges but her cases were dismissed, according to court records. As Law&Crime previously reported, she was arrested twice in one week in July 2024 for abuse of a child.
According to a report from KFOX, the initial incident took place on May 31, 2024. A probable cause affidavit obtained by the station states that Yvonne Legardy’s 14-year-old son fled from his home and went to the Thomas Branigan Memorial Library seeking assistance. The boy reportedly claimed that his mother had beaten him with the handle of a blue metal mop.
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Officers with the Las Cruces Police Department responded to the scene and spoke to the boy, who claimed that his bother beat him for failing to “properly” clean up their backyard. Police said the child had visible injuries which included welts on his body that appeared to match the diameter of the mop handle.
Police then went to the Legardy home in the 1700 block of Webster Avenue where she claimed her son lied about their violent encounter. Instead, Yvonne Legardy reportedly told police that she was attempting to search her son for “contraband” when he suddenly ran off. However, officers at the home also said they observed a blue metal mop in the garage that was visibly damaged in a manner consistent with the beating described by the child.
As investigators were looking into the initial allegations levied against her, they reportedly learned about a disturbing incident that began with her discovering a single vaping device and ultimately ended with her pepper-spraying several of her children.
Court documents reportedly state that on May 11, 2024, Yvonne Legardy found a vaping device at her home that she believed belonged to one of her children. When she was unable to determine which child brought the vape home, she allegedly took two of the kids into the backyard where she forced them to chain smoke cigarettes until they threw up.
According to court documents, Legardy reportedly became angry about the kids throwing up and responded by pulling out her can of Mace and pepper spraying them both. In fact, authorities reportedly alleged in court documents that Legardy has previously used pepper spray on her children multiple times.
Prosecutors dropped her cases in November, court records show.
Jerry Lambe contributed to this report
