Gannon Stauch Case: Colorado Mom Convicted of Killing 11-Year-Old Stepson, Her Attorney Calls Her Actions ‘Delusional’

Following a month-long trial, the woman who was accused of killing her 11-year-old stepson and scattering his remains across the country in early 2020 has been convicted of murder and ordered to serve two life sentences without the possibility of parole.

In February 2022, Letecia Stauch pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity in the killing of Gannon Stauch. Her defense team claimed she had suffered a psychotic break that led to the boy’s death and her actions in the killing on Jan. 27, 2020 were not those of a sane woman.

The jury didn’t agree and found her guilty on all charges, KMGH-TV reported. Stauch didn’t show any reaction when the verdict was read.

Closing arguments wrapped up on May 5 after five weeks of testimony from witnesses, including her daughter Harley Hunt, Gannon’s father Al Stauch and mental health experts.

Stauch’s defense attorney, Josh Tolini, tried to show her lack of mental clarity at the time of the crime by using body-worn camera footage of deputies from the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. In the footage, Stauch was reportedly laughing, joking and completely dissociating from the circumstances surrounding the boy's death.

Tolini said, “Those are not the actions of a sane and rational person. Those are the actions of someone who is delusional.”

Stauch’s mental state was brought into question during the trial. Earlier in the trial, a forensic psychologist with the Colorado Mental Health Hospital in Pueblo said Stauch was sane at the time Gannon was killed. However, the defense’s main witness, Dr. Dorothy Lewis, stated Stauch was in a “psychotic state” around the time he was killed, as Front Page Detectives previously reported.

Prosecutors argued Stauch took steps to cover up her actions, which is proof she knew what she did was wrong and was therefore sane.

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Stauch was charged with first-degree murder, first-degree murder — child under 12 by one in a position of trust, tampering with a deceased human body and tampering with physical evidence.

During her sentencing, Judge Gregory Werner said Stauch’s actions were “the most horrific I have ever seen” before giving the defendant two life sentences without parole on the two murder charges, 12 years for tampering with a deceased human body and 18 months for tampering with physical evidence, to be served consecutively.