'Didn't cause that much damage': Man kicked and beat his 23-month-old son until he was brain-dead then ran away and said he didn't hurt the child 'that bad'

A 28-year-old antheral successful California volition not spot the extracurricular of situation walls aft beating and sidesplitting his 23-month-old lad successful a harrowing lawsuit of torture.

Ezequiel Ramirez was sentenced to beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole positive 35 years aft pleading blameworthy to first-degree murder with the peculiar condition of torture successful the decease of his lad Joziah Ramirez.

The suspect besides pleaded blameworthy to 7 felony counts of pimping, pandering, and soliciting for prostitution, the Tulare County District Attorney's Office announced successful a property release.

According to the agency, Ramirez "impregnated Joziah's parent erstwhile she was aged 15." The suspect was astir 20 astatine the time, and helium was "on parole for robbery and statutory rape and was successful interaction with Joziah and the child's parent contempt a parole word prohibiting him from contacting them."

Years later, authorities accidental that Ramirez was "pimping out" Joziah's mother, who had since turned 18, and astatine slightest 1 different pistillate successful Tulare and Fresno counties successful California.

As the summertime of 2020 rolled around, Joziah was allegedly being abused regularly. In summation to verbal abuse, Ramirez would assistance his lad "up disconnected the crushed by his hair," the child's parent told police.

On June 5, 2020, the 3 were astatine a edifice successful Visalia — which is located successful the halfway of the Golden State — "to proceed Ramirez' pimping and pandering transgression enterprise." As Joziah's parent was distant from the motel, Ramirez "severely abused" his lad and then, alternatively of seeking to assistance the boy, messaged the pistillate to return.

"When she returned to the motel, she recovered Joziah unresponsive and breathing irregularly," the DA's bureau said. "There was humor connected the bedding and elsewhere successful the room. Ramirez told her helium had lone kicked Joziah successful the tummy and forbade her from calling an ambulance."

Authorities spell on, saying Ramirez alternatively called a household person and told her that Joziah had fallen down immoderate stairs. He deleted accusation from the telephone of Joziah's mother, and past ran away.

Investigators said that aboriginal that night, the suspect sent messages to the boy's mother, specified as, "I'm gone," "I'll ne'er spot u again," and "I'm truthful sorry."

At astir 11 p.m. that night, constabulary and exigency services arrived astatine the motel. It was "minutes aft Ramirez fled," the DA's bureau said.

The kid was rushed to a adjacent aesculapian halfway and past airlifted to a hospital, but helium was pronounced brain-dead. He died connected June 9, 2020.

"The fig and quality of Joziah's injuries proved they were the effect of inflicted, non-accidental trauma," the DA's property merchandise stated. "He had fractures to some sides of his skull, encephalon swelling and bleeding, fractures to some sides of his ribcage, and bruises, burns, and abrasions to his extremities, limbs, torso, and genitals."

The injuries were some interior and outer and "consistent with being struck, shaken, thrown, kicked, and burned," authorities added. Joziah's origin of decease was ruled blunt unit trauma to the head.

The pursuing morning, Ramirez called a person to prime him up, saying helium had been successful a car clang and needed a ride. As the person drove him to Fresno, California, "Ramirez was affectional and repeated 'I didn't person to bash it' respective times," per the DA's office. "He stayed the nighttime with the person but departed the adjacent greeting leaving down a duffel container of covering spotted with blood."

Ramirez evaded instrumentality enforcement for astir 4 days, and arsenic helium did, helium reportedly "continued trying to enlistee women for his prostitution operation." However, connected June 9, 2020, instrumentality enforcement apprehended him.

The suspect "initially claimed helium had nary cognition of what occurred and denied adjacent being astir his child," investigators said, but erstwhile they confronted him with evidence, helium "admitted to being present, but insisted helium did not wounded his lad 'that bad' and 'didn't origin that overmuch damage.'"

"The brutality and callousness of the suspect basal successful stark opposition to the innocence and vulnerability of this toddler whose assemblage was bloodied, burned, bruised, and breached by the precise idiosyncratic who should person been his protector and caregiver," said Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward.

The DA said Joziah's parent was charged arsenic a co-defendant "for failing to support her lad from Ramirez." She is acceptable to beryllium sentenced connected June 17, 2026, to a maximum of six years aft pleading blameworthy to felony kid endangerment successful 2021.

At the clip of his death, authorities said "Joziah was astir potty trained and was described arsenic astute and active."