A California man who crushed a 1-year-old baby girl with his foot was found guilty Thursday of the baby's murder. Daniel Ruiz, 25, was convicted of one count of second degree murder and one count of assault of a child causing murder.
Ruiz claimed that he felt used when the baby's mother asked him to babysit briefly, according to the Inquisitr. Ruiz's girlfriend Terra and her friend Andrea, the baby's mother, went to the store to buy some milk and asked Ruiz to watch two children while they were gone for about 30 minutes.
He admitted that once the baby's mother left, he was so angry that he walked over to the infant, Scarlett, lying on the floor, put his foot on her chest and stood on her with his full weight of 230 lbs. When he heard the baby gasp for air, he walked back to the TV and flipped through channels to find something to watch.
"He then placed his left foot on her chest, applying most of his 230 pounds of weight on her body," Kathleen DiDonato, deputy district attorney with San Bernardino County, said in a released statement.
When Ruiz finished flipping through the TV channels, he turned around and thought Scarlett was having a seizure, so he then tapped on her cheek in an attempt to bring the baby out of it.
As Andrea and Terra arrived home, he screamed at them to take the baby to the hospital. Andrea tried to call 911 and then ran the baby across the street to a nearby fire station that then transported the baby to the hospital, where she died shortly after, the Daily Mail reported.
An autopsy done two days later revealed the trauma and what had happened, but when Ruiz was questioned, he denied allegations. He changed his mind soon after, explaining that he felt used and taken advantage of by the mother, so he took it out on Scarlett.
"During his interview with law enforcement, the defendant stated that it felt as if the two ladies were taking advantage of him," said DiDonato, according to The Sun.
Sentencing for Ruiz is set for Jan. 15 at the Victorville Superior Court. He faces 25 years behind bars for Scarlett's murder.
