Colorado mom allegedly bought alcohol daily for 16-year-old daughter found dead with 173 empty bottles

A Colorado parent has been charged successful transportation with the decease of her 16-year-old daughter, who prosecutors accidental drank herself to decease and had 173 bare intoxicant bottles hidden successful her bedroom, authorities announced.

Gretchen Leanne Ryan, 55, is charged with second-degree murder, according to the First Judicial District Attorney’s Office. Her girl was identified successful an obituary arsenic Grace Elizabeth Ryan.

The younger Ryan was recovered dormant connected March 9 astatine her Arvada location aft authorities received reports of an unresponsive female.

Preliminary autopsy findings revealed the teen had an abnormally fatty liver for idiosyncratic her age, which aesculapian professionals believed indicated prolonged periods of intoxicant consumption. Her origin of decease was determined to beryllium aspiration pneumonia related to chronic intoxicant use.

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Gretchen Leanne Ryan is charged with the execution of her teen daughter, who authorities said drank herself to decease and was recovered with 173 bare intoxicant bottles hidden successful her bedroom. (Getty Images; Jefferson County Sheriff's Office)

The parent and girl often drank extensively and smoked marijuana together, prosecutors said. Beginning successful September 2025, the brace discussed drinking and purchasing intoxicant connected an astir regular ground via substance messages, according to authorities.

"The communications bespeak Ryan arranged regular intoxicant deliveries to the location and took steps to conceal the victim’s intoxicant usage from her father, who chiefly resided successful the basement of the home," the DA's bureau said successful a quality release.

Ryan kept supplying her girl with intoxicant contempt the teen's important carnal wellness concerns, according to substance messages. The communications described episodes of humor vomiting, trouble eating, trouble walking and the usage of diapers owed to symptoms associated with excessive intoxicant consumption.

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Police said that during their probe they recovered bottles of assorted brands and sizes of vodka and different hard liquor successful the girl's room. (Jeff Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images, File)

Aware of her excessive drinking, the younger Ryan feared she would dice and repeatedly expressed concerns astir her wellness to her mother, authorities said.

Text messages sent to her parent the nighttime earlier her decease revealed that the teen said she was not feeling well.

During their investigation, detectives recovered 173 bare intoxicant bottles hidden successful the teen's chamber — nether her furniture and wrong a closet, the DA said. 

The bottles included assorted brands and sizes of vodka and different hard liquor.

The First Judicial District Attorney’s Office has charged a Colorado parent with her daughter's decease aft she drank intoxicant excessively. (First Judicial District Attorney’s Office)

Amid her intoxicant consumption, the teen was un-enrolled from her precocious schoolhouse successful April 2025 to be online classes, constabulary said.

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At the clip of her death, she had completed lone 1 online semester of ninth people and had not participated successful activities extracurricular the location for respective months.

Ryan is being held successful the Jefferson County Jail connected a $500,000 cash-only bond.