ILIANA GONZALEZ - 2 Months (2009) - Santa Ana CA

SANTA ANA – In a rare development, a man charged with killing his
2-month-old daughter pleaded guilty Wednesday after testifying for about
two hours and as his murder trial neared conclusion.
Under a barrage of questions by the prosecutor, many of whom Christian Trinidad
Gonzalez, 25, responded to by saying "I don't recall" through a Spanish
interpreter, the defendant suddenly asked to speak with his attorney,
halting the proceedings and sending jurors to an early lunch.



Gonzalez agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder, and prosecutors dropped a second count of child abuse.
Superior Court Judge William Froeberg ordered him to serve 15 years to life in
prison after Gonzalez agreed he willfully threw his daughter Iliana
against a couch and his action caused her death.
"In my opinion, this was a just and reasonable resolution of this case," Froeberg said
after taking the plea. "After hearing Mr. Gonzalez's testimony, I do not
believe there is any reasonable possibility that he would have been
found not guilty and this case in my opinion does not rise to the level
of a sentence of 25 years to life."
That's the sentence for first-degree murder.
On the stand Wednesday morning, Gonzalez testified that he told police
different versions of what happened, including that he threw the baby
against the couch and shook her because he was worried his daughters were being taken.
Under cross examination, he said "I don't recall" to numerous questions.
Gonzalez was charged with one count of murder and one count of assault on a
child with force likely to produce great bodily injury resulting in death, both felonies.
Showing jurors photos of the Santa Ana
apartment couch against which Gonzalez threw the child, Senior Deputy
District Attorney Steve McGreevy told them last week that the
defendant's account of what happened the day Iliana got injured kept evolving.
The father of two, who was dealing with money issues and
suffered from headaches, the prosecutor said, demonstrated to police
using a teddy bear how he threw Iliana against the couch, causing injuries that led to her death.
Senior Deputy Public Defender Lisa
Eyanson said her client, who shook Iliana causing further injury, told
jurors in her opening remarks that Gonzalez told authorities different
stories about what transpired on March 17, 2009, because he wanted to
reunite his family with social services stepping in and taking away his older daughter.
Eyanson declined to comment after the conviction, but the prosecutor said the defendant knew he was in a tight spot.
"He realized that what he was saying was not consistent with the facts in the case and what he did," McGreevy said.
Homicide cases sometimes end in guilty pleas by the accused after a jury has
been picked but rarely at such a late stage in the trial.
Gonzalez testified he was feeding the baby that evening but she couldn't breathe
very well, something the prosecutor challenged, saying he never told a
911 dispatcher anything about Iliana being sick.
Under further cross examination, Gonzalez said his daughter threw up twice that day,
while the prosecutor said his wife had testified the child did not vomit.
"I don't recall," Gonzalez said of his wife's testimony, never looking toward the jury.
He also told his wife two different accounts of what happened, the
prosecutor said: First that he left Iliana on the couch and returned to
find her not breathing and then that the infant had fallen off the couch.
McGreevy zeroed in on why Gonzalez, as he testified, would
leave alone an infant who was having difficulty breathing and go to the
restroom, rather than call his wife who was about 24 feet away with
their older daughter in the laundry room.
Did he consider putting the baby on a nearby swing with a belt rather than on the couch or call
relatives from upstairs to watch her? Gonzalez answered no to both questions.
Gonzalez admitted to lying to police in about seven
statements and one to a social worker because he said he thought if he
shifted the blame to himself, he and his wife would get back their older
daughter, who was taken away by Child Protective Services.
The day after Iliana was taken to the hospital, McGreevy asked, did he tell officers he shook her?
"Yes."
"Are you sure you didn't shake her?"
"No."
"Is there any reason prior to answering that question you looked at the defense table?"
"No."
At that point, Gonzalez asked to speak with his attorney. A short recess turned into a longer one, and the guilty plea followed.

http://www.ocregister.com/news/gonzalez-309834-told-testified.html