Media

Sometimes, I can’t even get through the facts. Words cannot express the tragedy and evil involved in a case where a 2 year old dies as a result of internal ruptures (including a spine bruised by the impact of the intestines on the spinal column) due to repeated beatings, not to mention the bruises, broken bones, burns and missing hair). In State v. Moreno-Garcia, a 2 year old girl was brought in to the hospital already several-hours-dead with a stomach the size and shape of a basketball from air that had leaked into the abdomen over the previous day or two. The foster father was on trial for manslaughter for failing to get the girl medical attention when she was in what would have been obvious medical distress from a perforated small intestine and bowel for at least 24 hours prior to her death. The foster mother of the 2 year old had previously pled guilty to killing the child and is now serving (only!) a 12 year sentence.

The issue on the appeal was whether the use of testimony from the CARES worker who interviewed the sister of the murder victim because “the abuse of [the sister] was not relevant to the state’s theory against defendant, and [the doctor’s] report was ‘testimonial’ hearsay” prohibited under the confrontation clause. This Court of Appeals found the information of abuse of the sister was relevant, but that the testimony about the medical examination and the interviews with siblings was covered by the confrontation clause.

Rather than throw out what was plainly a valid conviction, the court noted that the other testimony in the case (the father was with the girl but never sought medical attention despite the fact that the 2 year old’s stomach was the size and shape of a basketball at death because of air leaking into the abdominal cavity, in despite the symptoms she would have certainly exhibited for at least a day beforehand), was enough to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Mr. Moreno-Garcia can think about his criminal lack of concern for his child for the next ten years in prison.