Who was Valeria Jordan Garfias? Couple sentenced in killing friend's 2-year-old daughter for wetting diapers
HALL COUNTY, GEORGIA: Valeria Jordan Garfias was a 2-year-old girl who was brutally beaten to death by her mother’s friends who were babysitting her in Georgia in 2021.
The couple, Juan Martinez and Nancy Martinez were sentenced to 29 and eight years in prison, respectively, on Monday, October 30, for the horrific crime, Law&Crime reported.
A brutal beating that led to the tragic death of Valeria Jordan Garfias
Hall County Fire Services responded to the call on October 10, 2021, at about 1.50 PM at the couple’s residence at the 2000 block of Bennet Circle
Emergency medical personnel attempted life-saving procedures, and the toddler was rushed to Northeast Georgia Medical Center.
The toddler was then flown to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead from her injuries.
According to court documents, Juan Martinez entered an Alford plea to a lesser charge of second-degree murder, which carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
Nancy Martinez pleaded guilty to second-degree child cruelty and hindering the apprehension of a criminal.
She admitted that she did not call 911 when she returned home and found Valeria injured and that she helped her husband lie about the circumstances of the child’s death.
Juan Martinez hit Valeria 2 multiple times on the head for defecating
He confessed that he got angry because Valeria defecated on a chair and shot her numerous times in the head.
“(He said) that he got mad and just hit her on the head,” Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Bagwell told the court on Monday, according to the Gainesville Times.
The impact of the blows caused traumatic brain injury and other internal injuries to the child’s body, which led to her death.
Nancy Martinez had known Valeria’s mother since they were children
Bagwell said Nancy Martinez had known Valeria’s mother since they were children and that the murder was “a horrific betrayal.”
Bagwell also recounted Juan Martinez’s admission to investigators about striking Valeria in an interview. She said, “...Valeria wet her diaper, and poop came out on the chair at the table, and that she was supposed to let them know when she had to go potty,” Bagwell reportedly told the court on Monday.
The couple, during the trial, claimed that they loved Valeria and that she called them mother and father.
However, they betrayed that trust and love by killing her and covering up their crime.
Judge Jason J Deal expressed his dismay at the couple’s actions
Judge Jason J Deal imposed sentences that reflected the gravity of their offense.
He said, “In this case, I’m faced with the facts that a child less than 3 years old was beaten to death while she was in the care of the two defendants.
“And when the defendants were confronted with that fact, Mrs Martinez chose Mr Martinez over this child. And Mr Martinez chose to be less than truthful, which they both had a right to do,” he reportedly said. “But they claimed that this was their child, that they loved this child, that this child called them mother and father. Yet when she died, they chose to lie.”