SAN ANTONIO – A medical examiner and a forensic anthropologist testified Friday that they could not determine the cause or manner of death of a 5-year-old boy who was allegedly killed by his mother’s boyfriend.
Domenic Aguilar-Acevedo died in a San Antonio hotel in July 2021. His remains were found a month later in a ravine in Colorado.
According to testimony by Domenic’s mother, Nickolle Aguilar, her boyfriend Daniel Garcia was physically abusing Domenic until he died. Garcia is on trial on a charge of injury to a child causing serious bodily injury.
Because of the decomposed state of Domenic’s remains when they were found, a medical examiner in Colorado could not determine the cause or manner of his death.
The remains were then sent to an FBI forensic anthropologist to further look at his bones. The anthropologist, Angie Christensen, told the jury that she found fractures in Domenic’s jaw, shoulder blade, ribs and hip.
Christensen believed the healing process the bones were in were caused before Domenic’s death, but she couldn’t give an exact time and could not determine a cause or manner of death.
Garcia has been on trial all week and the defense believes Aguilar was the one abusing Domenic.
The jury will get to decide guilt or innocence next week.
If found guilty, Garcia could facing a maximum punishment of up to life in prison.
Testimony will resume Tuesday morning in the 226th District Court.
You can learn more about the case below: