Arkansas | Dad ‘who sexually abused son, 6, to death with stick’ now faces third murder trial

A father accused of sexually abusing his six-year-old son to death with a stick is set to face his third murder trial.

Mauricio Torres, 50, is facing the death penalty on capital murder and battery charges. He was set to face a jury trial scheduled to begin on August 24, but the trial was canceled this week as the state’s Supreme Court rules on whether he will get a new trial, or just be re-sentenced after he was convicted twice in trials that were thrown out.

Police say Torres killed his son, Maurice Torres, who died in March 30, 2015, after his father beat him and sexually abused him with a stick while camping in Missouri. The attack allegedly left the boy with a wound that became infected, which ultimately killed him.

Prosecutors said Torres also pulled the boy’s teeth with pliers, forced him to bath in bleach and beat him with a stick.

The attack with killed Maurice, who was also known as Isaiah, happened because the hungry youngster eat a piece of cake without asking permission.

Torres was convicted by a jury and sentenced to death in his first trial in 2016 after hearing from five or Torres’s children and step-children who accused him of years of physical and sexual abuse.

However, that decision was overturned by the Arkansas Supreme Court because prosecutors did not give enough evidence to warrant the death penalty.

The state’s high court ruled that because the alleged crime happened in Missouri, Arkansas authorities could not use rape to substantiate capital murder charges, according to Arkansas Online.

In March, Torres faced his second jury trial and was again convicted on the same charges, but his stepson, Quinten Martin, tried to attack Torres in the courtroom during the sentencing proceedings while the jury was present.

A deputy and bailiff stopped Martin before he reached Torres, but Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren ruled Torres should have another trial because of the incident.

The Arkansas Supreme Court is now tasked with deciding whether Torres should get a completely new trial, or just be re-sentenced, after he was found guilty in March.

Torres’s wife, Kathy, is currently serving life in prison for her son’s death after taking a plea deal that saw her testify against Torres, however, she said she never realized the complete scope of her husband’s alleged abuse against the boy.

Source: metro.co.uk, Jacob Geanous, May 14, 2020

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