Mother allegedly killed baby to hide relationship with juvenile

Mother allegedly killed baby to hide relationship with juvenile

Monday, August 31, 2009

HAMILTON, Ohio — A Hamilton mother could face the death penalty on charges that she allegedly killed her 5-week-old son and stuffed him in a garbage can because he was the product of a sexual relationship with a minor.



Asuncion “Suzie” Avila-Villa, 25, who lived in an upstairs apartment in the 1300 block of Shuler Avenue, was arrested Aug. 25, and charged with murder, endangering children, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence.

A Butler County grand jury returned an indictment today, Aug. 31, on Avila-Villa on charges of aggravated murder, endangering children, gross abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and unlawful sexual conduct involving a minor.

The indictment states Avila-Villa allegedly killed the infant to escape punishment for the unlawful sexual conduct charges.

Butler County Prosecutor Robin Piper said the infant was born from a sexual relationship between Avila-Villa and a boy older than 13 but younger than 16. The relationship allegedly took place between September 2008 and November 2008, Piper said.

Piper said his office does not take the capital cases — those involving the death penalty — lightly, but that the grand jury was correct in its recommendation.

“The facts and details of the murder of this innocent child are unexplainably horrifying and clearly support that indictment that the grand jury handed down,” Piper said. “We’re never cavalier in seeking the death penalty, but where the law and evidence support it.

“The facts and circumstances are so horrifying, that this indictment is entirely warranted,” he said. “It’s entirely justified.”

On Aug. 24, Avila-Villa reported to police that her baby had been taken away by a former boyfriend the previous night and that he had not returned. But, following an investigation, detectives found the baby the next day in a trash can in an alley behind her apartment building. He had been placed in a plastic bag, police said.

According to an autopsy, the baby, Israel Santos, died of a crushed skull before being placed in the bag, Butler County Coroner Dr. Richard Burkhardt said.

The baby also had a broken arm and low body weight for a child his age, Burkhardt said.

The coroner said the baby boy had been dead for two days before he was found.

Piper said the tampering with evidence charge comes from Avila-Villa allegedly misleading police with false reports, and that there was no reason to believe anyone other than the mother harmed the baby.

Avila-Villa remains in jail on a $1 million bond. As of this morning, an arraignment had not been scheduled, but is expected to take place sometime early this week, Piper said.

http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/crime/mother-allegedly-killed-baby-to-hide-relationship-with-juvenile-273913.html



Read the indictment (pdf) (79.5KB)

http://www.wcpo.com/media/lib/94/7/d/b/7dbb2681-529e-41c3-9793-ab58a8b81a00/AR_BC320_20090901_000543.pdf