Though I’m a bit behind on picking up this shocking story seeing the original came out on July 9th, I’m going to talk about it again anyway for those who might not have heard it.
A thirty-one-year-old Fort Meade woman named Judith Torres-Garcia has been accused of killing a two-month-old little boy after “blacking out.” Judith told the Polk County Sherriff’s Office she “doesn’t know how she ended up on top of him.”
On July 3, Polk County Police were called to a private home in Fort Meade after a report came in stating “an infant wasn’t breathing after falling out of his crib.”
According to Ms. Torres-Garcia, she was in bed sleeping when she heard the baby cry around 1 p.m. and woke up. She’d gone to the baby’s crib to tend to him, but “blacked out” and “couldn’t remember what happened.”
A man named Hipolito Juarez was also present in the home and claims he’d “heard a smack” while in bed. He’d gone to investigate and found Ms. Torres-Garcia “on the ground with the baby underneath her.”
Mr. Juarez realized the baby was in trouble, so the pair called 911. Sadly, when help arrived, paramedics discovered the baby “wasn’t breathing, his eyes were closed and he didn’t have a pulse,” and that he “had redness to the front of his head and swelling on the sides.”
The baby died at a Tampa hospital a day later, from what a medical examiner said were: “multiple skull fractures, bleeding inside and outside his skull and an injury to his leg.” His injuries prompted the death to be ruled as a homicide. When asked to reenact the scene, Torres-Garcia said she’d gone to the baby and said: “Hey good morning. Good afternoon, gimmie your lil hands,” before blacking out.
“This is the last picture in my head, after that everything went black,” said Ms. Torres-Garcia. “It’s like the lights went black.”
Drugs such as marijuana, meth, and cocaine were found in the home. Sheriff Grady Judge of the Polk County Police worded it best when she called the death of this innocent child “a tragedy.”
“This 8-week-old infant was killed by a woman who lives with a convicted felon and illegal drugs in the home. This baby’s life had barely begun. What a tragedy. We will do everything possible to make sure this suspect is held accountable and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Both Ms. Torres-Garcia and Mr. Juarez could be charged with “possession of methamphetamine, possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.” Ms. Torres-Garcia also faces a charge of “aggravated manslaughter of a child.”
This story makes me sick, but it is good to know the law is taking it very seriously. Rest in peace, sweet little baby. You didn’t deserve this. What are your thoughts?