The conviction and sentence for a Lake Charles man convicted of raping his girlfriend’s 11-year-old daughter will stand.

Braylen Marquez LeDay was unanimously found guilty of first-degree rape on March 3, 2023. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

During the trial, the girlfriend testified that LeDay would often stay at her home or pick up dinner for her daughters when she worked late. She said on one occasion, she returned home and found LeDay in bed with her daughters. She said she removed the covers and found LeDay embracing one of the girls. She took pictures of them in bed, before waking LeDay up and demanding an explanation.

LeDay told her he must have been sleepwalking, the girlfriend testified.

She said the next day, LeDay took the girls to a family get-together while she worked. She said during her shift, her aunt called and said she needed to return home immediately. She said when she entered the home, she heard water running from the bathroom and found a pile of clothes on the floor. She said when she confronted LeDay, he fled the house. The 11-year-old also fled and returned a few hours later.

Sommer Rachal, who was then an emergency room psychiatric nurse at Christus St. Patrick’s Hospital, testified that LeDay checked himself into the emergency room the following day, asking to be tested for chlamydia and claiming to have heard voices.

Rachal testified that when she interviewed LeDay, he told her he had been “doing things” with an 11-year-old girl.

When questioned about his claim that he was hearing voices, LeDay said he was hearing voices at the time of the incident with the girl; however, he was not hearing them as he was being assessed. Rachal testified LeDay denied any mental health history, past diagnosis or admissions into in-patient mental health facilities. He also had never seen a mental health provider.

Rachal said LeDay exhibited no symptoms or signs of psychosis.

Body camera footage recorded by Lake Charles Police Cpl. Raymond Ford at the hospital and shown to jurors showed LeDay initially denying any type of sexual contact with the victim other than kissing, but he eventually admitted the two had sexual relations recently.

Text messages from LeDay’s phone were also shown to jurors. The messages confirm LeDay was having sex with the girl.

A DNA swab during the girl’s examination at a local hospital also matched LeDay.

Melanie Veillon, a detective with the Calcasieu Parish Sheriff’s Office, interviewed LeDay after this arrest. Video footage of him confessing to having both vaginal and oral sex with the girl was played for jurors.

In his appeal to the 3rd Circuit, LeDay claims the prosecution didn’t present enough direct or circumstantial evidence for the jury to corroborate his confession to having sexual relations with the girl. He also claimed his confession was given after he had been hearing voices and noted he initially pled not guilty by reason of insanity.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal, denied these claims, stating LeDay “provided no evidence supporting his defense of insanity. Consequently, the jury had no reason to doubt the validity of his own statements confessing to having sex with (the girl).”