March 26, 2008
At 19-years-old, Man Microwaves 2-Month-Old Daughter
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) -- Jurors who rejected a young father's claim that he was insane when he burned his infant daughter in a microwave must now decide his punishment. Prosecutors are asking that Joshua Mauldin be sentenced to life in prison for stuffing his daughter Ana in a microwave and turning it on for 10 to 20 seconds. His defense attorney asked for probation so his client could continue receiving psychiatric treatment.Jurors deliberated Mauldin's punishment for 2½ hours Tuesday without a decision. They were set to resume working on Wednesday. Earlier Tuesday, the jury convicted Mauldin, 20, of felony injury to a child, dismissing his claim he was having a psychotic episode when he put his then 2-month-old daughter in a Galveston hotel microwave in May 2007.
Mauldin had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. The conviction came after about four hours of deliberations, which began Monday afternoon. Galveston County Prosecutor Xochitl Vandiver asked jurors to give Mauldin a life sentence because Mauldin had given his daughter a life sentence as well -- one of physical and emotional scars.
Mauldin at first told police his daughter had been severely sunburned, later changing his story and saying he had accidentally spilled hot water on her while making coffee. Ana suffered second- and third-degree burns to her left ear, cheek, hand and shoulder and required two skin grafts after being in the microwave. Part of her left ear had to be amputated.
"She will always for the rest of her life be reminded just by looking in a mirror," Vandiver said. Prosecutors said Mauldin was angry that he was in a loveless marriage and took it out on his daughter. Just before putting her in the microwave, Mauldin had punched the baby and put her in the hotel-room safe and refrigerator.
Ok, Mauldin was mad at his wife so he took it out on the daughter? What? How is it the daughter's fault that the wife didn't love him?
Crazy, fellas, crazy!!
Here's the twist guys, THE WIFE, wants him out of jail so that they can be a family again. THE WIFE said that he did it because he was under "demonic possession" (which actually might be true) and, according to Nancy Grace(CNN), Mauldin was planning on being a pastor someday.
Guys, thoughts?
Here's this sick story on YouTube:
Posted by anthony at March 26, 2008 07:58 AM | TrackBackFour months ago, this would have made my skin crawl. Now I'm pregnant with our first, and I'm physically ill. This man should never be near a child again. Ever. The risk that he'll snap again is far too great.
Posted by: Vida at March 26, 2008 10:27 AMYeah, I still can believe it. Maybe he was possessed by something.
Posted by: Anthony at March 26, 2008 11:46 AMAs a dad, a bullet in the kidney would be too good for him.
Posted by: stelmodad at March 26, 2008 12:10 PMI can't imagine being that defense attorney (public defender, I assume). I would never be able to live with myself. Thank God he was convicted.
Posted by: Brad at March 26, 2008 01:08 PMCome Quickly Lord Jesus! Sh** like this just is not SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN! That's really all I know...
Posted by: jared at March 26, 2008 02:15 PMJust a few months ago, another very young dad, threw his 3 month old son, still in the car seat, out of the car, near the seawall in Galveston. Later that day, a man and his wife were enjoying the wildlife in the area. The man came upon the carseat and couldn't believe his eyes. I heard the 911 call on the local news, he was devastated at finding the little boy, mostly out of the car seat, dead. Last year, a little three year old girl's body, in a plastic blue bin, was found by a fisherman, floating not far from Galveston. The mom and her new husband were found a few weeks later. The new stepdad killed her. The couple then put her body in the trunk of their car while they shopped at Walmart for the supplies to do away with her body. The little girl's dad and grandmother in Ohio didn't know anything had happened. These three cases made me so ill to my stomach when I heard them on the local news. The only peace is knowing the two children who were killed are being cradled in a loving God's hands. I pray the little girl who was burned will know at a young age that God loves her. She's now in foster care. I don't know why the extended family doesn't have custody.
Posted by: t.smith at March 26, 2008 05:20 PMWithout knowing any further details than what was provided by the video, it seems to me that the prosecution has it wrong. Anyone who has kids can tell you that they'll push you to the limits of your patience. It's no excuse, mind you...parents are charged with incredible responsibilities which require continual dying to self...but the idea that he took out his frustrations over his marriage on the child seems to me like a flimsy excuse, a cover, for the fact that we're addicted to our own desires, comfort, priorities and agendas. The spin is that being psychotic or mad at your wife sounds a lot more justifiable than not being able to control your temper when faced with a fussy baby.
As a father, I feel the need to continually repent of my harsh words, lack of patience and unreasonable expectations toward my children. It's only by the grace of God that I'm not sitting in the same seat as Mauldin.
Posted by: Scott at March 26, 2008 08:15 PMDon't blame the public defender, they have to defend!!
Even scum gets a fair trial. That protects all of us if we get falsely accused. This is an awful case on which to judge the legal system. This guy should just be shot. In the head, With a .44 Magnum at close range. Done. Now, he will
cost us a fortune to keep alive for 25 years, then we will have to give him job training and school and more!!
I bet there will be people in prison who feel rage at what this man did. The prisons have a way of executing justice.
It will sound dark, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn that the tax payers won't have to keep him alive for 25 years, etc.
Posted by: GUNNY HARTMAN at March 28, 2008 01:27 AMI have no words for this. This man makes the average baby-thrower look like a nice neighbor. Nothing human can justify his actions.
Gunny, dark or not, you're probably right. Prisoners are parents, too, and often have a way of dealing with those who hurt and kill children...
Posted by: dramaturge at March 29, 2008 09:33 PM