A Los Angeles man is on trial for the murder of an 8-year-old boy he thought was gay.
During the court case, stories are being shared of how Isauro Aguirre and Pearl Fernandez, who’s being tried separately, tortured Fernandez’s child Gabriel.
Allegedly, they beat him, burned him with cigarettes, sprayed him with pepper spray, starved him, made him dress as a girl, and fed him cat feces and his own vomit.
During opening arguments, prosecutors showed the jury tools Aguirre used to torture the boy. Prosecutor John Hatami says his reasoning for the boy's torture was his own hatred built on the belief that Gabriel was gay.
On top of that, Gabriel was reportedly kept gagged and bound in a small cabinet until first responders found him on May 22, 2013.
And who called the police? Aguirre and Fernandez themselves.
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Prosecutors say the two called emergency services in order to mislead authorities. “They didn’t call 911 to help Gabriel. They called 911 to cover up what they did. The defendant lied on the 911 call.”
That said, things got worse when Gabriel died in the hospital two days later. In court, a paramedic testified that the amount of trauma on the boy’s body was “unbelievable.”
Aguirre’s defense admits to the horrendous torture, but in an attempt to lower the sentence time he is denying the intention to kill the boy (as if that makes things better).
“He is guilty of murder, but the special circumstance alleged, that he intended kill Gabriel with the infliction of torture, is not true,” defense attorney John Allan said. “Despite the horrific abuse, Isauro never intended for Gabriel to die.”
That said, his intention not to kill doesn’t take away the fact that he ultimately did.
“Gabriel’s last vision was that man over there standing over Gabriel, beating him to death,” said prosecutor John Hatami. “The evidence will show that the defendant is nothing more than a bully. He was a security guard who intentionally tortured and abused a helpless and innocent little boy.”
On top of the mother also being charged for the murder of the boy, four Los Angeles County social workers assigned to the boy’s case are also facing charges.
h/t: NewNowNext
