PONTIAC, Mich. (WXYZ) — Kelli Bryant, a Pontiac mother accused of leaving her kids to live alone, has entered a no contest plea to child abuse charges in the case.
She will be sentenced on September 12, 2026. In a press release, the Oakland County Prosecutor's office says that under the terms of a plea agreement, Bryant will serve at least six years in prison.
“This plea will spare the children from testifying at trial and ensures Bryant remains incarcerated until they are all adults,” said Prosecutor Karen McDonald in a news release. “I'm hopeful the children she victimized will continue to have the space and resources to heal from this abhorrent trauma.”
The plea comes just over a month after a critical legal hurdle was cleared when Kelli Bryant was found competent to stand trial in the case that's absolutely shaken the Pontiac community.
Bryant's competency hearing took place in the court of Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Mary Ellen Brennan, who agreed with a psychiatrist’s findings that Bryant is officially competent to stand trial.
“Given the above, it is my opinion that she is competent to stand trial,” Brennan ruled.
Watch Darren Cunningham's June video report:
Bryant faced three counts of child abuse after investigators uncovered a horrific scene in February 2025 at an apartment on Lydia Lane. The children were found living alone in filth and squalor.
Investigators say three of her children had been locked inside an apartment for four to five years, surviving on food provided to them just once a week. Bryant lived elsewhere. According to the prosecutor's office, her parental rights were terminated in April.
RELATED STORY: Neighbor says abandoned Pontiac children would sometimes call out the window
On the same day as her competency hearing, Bryant was sentenced on separate charges of welfare fraud… charges stemming from her collecting state benefits for those children while keeping them hidden from the world.
RELATED STORY: Mom in Pontiac abandonment case pleads no contest on Welfare Fraud charge, still faces child abuse charges
During that June hearing, the judge asked, “Ms. Bryant, do you wanna be heard on the sentence? So this is.. we’re just talking about the welfare fraud case. Anything you wanna say before I go through the sentence?"
Bryant replied, "No, ma’am."
Bryant received 112 days for each of the three counts of welfare fraud and two years' probation. She's also been ordered to pay $29,300 in restitution. Because she was already incarcerated, she was given credit for the time she’s been locked up.
Following the June hearing, 7 News Detroit stopped by the apartment where the children were found and spoke with a neighbor.
Ron Williams said, “I think she’ll be held accountable for the actions that she took with the kids. I think it’s warranted and just gotta wait and see what happens. So, yeah, I think it’s a bad situation for the kids, and I hope the kids are doing well now.”
Bryant’s trial had been set for August 24th.
