PATRICIA JOY SYLVESTER of Shelbyville was sentenced in criminal court last week to life in prison for the 2023 murder of her 12-year-old son. She also received 25 years for the first-degree attempted murder of her 4-year-old son back in 2023.
Sylvester has admitted to the death of her son by strangulation. She was charged on July 18, 2023, arraigned on May 5, 2024, made her plea to the court in July this year and was sentenced Sept. 11, 2025.
Shelbyville Police reported in 2023, that the 12-year-old, named Esteban Sylvester, was found unresponsive by his father at their Barksdale Lane residence.
The investigation by Shelbyville Police then centered around the boy’s mother, then 32, and her 4-year-old son, Rafael Sylvester-both missing. An endangered child alert was issued for the boy, who was believed to be with his mother.
Sylvester eventually returned home with her son and was formally charged by the state with criminal homicide.