To me, and the vast majority of other adults in the world, babies are sweet, innocent things that we have a responsibility to nurture and care for.
It’s a natural response to want to care for the next generation of humans, and the idea of causing purposeful harm to a baby is beyond my idea of rational thought.
Sadly, that’s not the same for everyone. 25-year-old Daniel Ruiz faces 25 years to life in prison, after using his foot to crush a 1-year-old girl to death.
Her crime? Simply being in the presence of a man who should never have been allowed to be close to a child.
According to reports, Ruiz had been left alone to babysit two children of his girlfriend Terra. She and a friend named Andrea were going shopping, so they left Ruiz to keep an eye on Andrea’s daughters.
The 25-year-old Ruiz, however, at some point got it into his head that the two women were taking advantage of him. His response was to commit a murder as callous as it was cruel.
“During his interview with law enforcement, the defendant stated that it felt as if the two ladies were taking advantage of him,” said Kathleen DiDonato, deputy district attorney, in a statement.
Committing murder
Ruiz, who weighs in at 230 lbs, placed his foot on one of the baby’s chests and pushed down with all his weight. When the girl, named Scarlett, started to struggle to breathe, it’s said he walked over to change the channel on the television.
Scarlett began to have a seizure, and so Ruiz tapped her on the cheek to try and wake her up. The women returned home from shopping, less than an hour later, and when they did, Ruiz ran out into the front yard and told them Scarlett needed to go to the hospital. The girl died two days later from her internal injuries.
Ruiz, naturally, refused to admit to crushing Scarlett to death, but an autopsy revealed the cause of her death. Upon admitting to the heinous crime, Ruiz then told police that he had felt better after crushing the child.
No regrets
“The defendant stated that he actually felt better after stepping on the victim, as he sat there watching television,” DiDonato said.
“The whole time, Scarlett was behind him, lying on the floor trying to catch her breath. Fighting for her life.”
Crimes like this are truly despicable, and those who commit them deserve the harshest possible sentences.
Please share this article to send prayers for little Scarlett’s family!
