THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2005
D.A. BROWN: RIDGEWOOD FATHER ADMITS
TO KILLING 3-MONTH-OLD SON BY VIOLENTLY SHAKING HIM
Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter; Will Serve 14
Years in Prison
Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today that a Ridgewood, Queens, man who admitted to violently shaking his crying infant son and causing his death has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
District Attorney Brown said, “Shaken Baby Syndrome is the leading cause of child abuse deaths each year. Its victims are innocent and helpless children, often injured by those charged to protect them. These smallest victims are often impaired for life or killed. Caregivers of children who cry should heed the important message that these cases unfortunately bring to our attention – normal babies cry. There are many solutions to deal with a crying baby – shaking is not one of them. Never, under any circumstances, should a person shake a baby. In this case, no matter what sentence the court imposes, the defendant will have to live for the rest of his life with the guilt and knowledge that he alone was responsible for the death of his child.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Victor Fuentes, 20, of 459 Onderdonk Avenue in Ridgewood, Queens. He pleaded guilty earlier today to Manslaughter in the First Degree before Queens Supreme Court Justice Robert C. Hanophy who indicated that he would sentence the defendant to a determinate term of 14 years in prison when sentenced on January 5, 2006.
District Attorney Brown said that defendant admitted that on March 16, 2004 at about 11:30 a.m. inside 459 Onderdonk Avenue in Ridgewood, Queens, he violently shook his three-month-old baby son, Victor Fuentes, Jr., because the baby wouldn’t stop crying. As a result of his actions the baby stopped breathing, sustained serious injuries and brain damage and was later pronounced dead.
The investigation was conducted by Detective Vincent Pellizzi of the New York City Police Department’s Queens Special Victims Squad under the supervision of Lieutenant Patrick Baricelli, Squad Commander.
Assistant District Attorney Lucinda C. Suarez, Deputy Bureau Chief of the District Attorney’s Special Victims Bureau prosecuted the case under the supervision of Marjory D. Fisher, Bureau Chief and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Major Crimes Charles A. Testagrossa and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney for Major Crimes Daniel A. Saunders.