Fayant pleads guilty to manslaughter in toddler’s death

A Brookings woman enters a guilty plea in the 2019 death of a two-year-old girl.

Twenty-seven-year-old Renae Fayant on Tuesday afternoon pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the first degree. In exchange for the guilty plea, the state agreed to dismiss counts of second degree murder and abuse or cruelty to a minor. The state also agreed to a maximum sentence of 75-years in prison. The normal maximum would be life in prison.

Fayant and 29-year-old Robert Price, Jr. were both indicted by a Brookings County Grand Jury in the death of the girl. She was the two-year-old niece of Fayant and was under her care.

Fayant admitted she was the primary caregiver for the little girl and did not dispute that the child had died because of malnourishment and dehydration. She also admitted that she caused the little girl’s death.

The judge ordered a pre-sentence investigation. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

The case against Price is still pending.

July 13, 2021