A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit by Letecia Stauch, who challenged the conditions of her confinement in the El Paso County jail prior to being convicted of murder last year in a high-profile criminal trial.

In May 2023, jurors found Stauch guilty of murdering her 11-year-old stepson, Gannon. She received a sentence of life in prison.

While incarcerated pretrial, Stauch filed suit against the county and the jail’s medical and food providers. She alleged staff were inappropriately labeling non-kosher food items as kosher and violating the sanitary requirements for a kosher diet. In retaliation for her complaints, jail workers delayed or denied her food. Stauch also claimed the jail was not providing adequate medical treatment.

The defendants moved to dismiss, but Stauch repeatedly failed to respond to court orders or filings. In a series of letters, she informed the court her address changed multiple times and, as of August, she had transferred to a Kansas facility. She elaborated that prison officials there were “interfering with legal mail” and Stauch was litigating that issue before a Kansas judge.

In an Aug. 8 order, U.S. District Court Judge S. Kato Crews decided to dismiss Stauch’s lawsuit due to her failure to prosecute. Crews cited Stauch’s pattern of non-response and non-compliance with the procedural rules.

“Plaintiff suggests the Kansas Department of Corrections is interfering with her legal mail and access to this Court, and further that she commenced a legal proceeding in Kansas to address these infringements on her rights,” he wrote. “But Plaintiff has not sought any relief in this Court related to her ability, or inability, to prosecute her case.”

The case is Stauch v. El Paso County et al.