Photo: Everal Martnez

by Roy Davis (freelance reporter)

BELIZE CITY, Tues. May 2, 2023

In March, 2018, when the Belizean public learned of the passing of Baby Alyssa Nunez at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (KHMH) after she had seemingly been bludgeoned and sexually assaulted with an unknown object, while in the care of her stepfather, Everal Martnez, in Maskall Village, the response was loud and visceral. A March 2018 issue of the AMANDALA had reported that the news of the death of Baby Alyssa, who had been placed on life support at the KHMH, “had triggered a spontaneous protest with protesters marching along Central American Boulevard, all the way to Battlefield Park”, and when Martinez was arraigned in the Magistrate Court on charges of murder, rape of a child below the age of 16 years, and assault of a child below the age of 16 years by penetration, protesters gathered in front of the court buildings amidst unprecedented police security.

This week, however, with the attention of the public focused elsewhere, an unexpected verdict was handed down by Justice Ricardo Sandcroft, who was both judge and jury in the Supreme Court trial of Martinez. Sandcroft ruled that there was not sufficient direct evidence to confirm that it was Martinez, 25, who caused the death of Baby Alyssa, who according to a postmortem exam, died as a result of massive brain hemorrhage due to head trauma.

That post-mortem examination, which was performed by Dr. Mario Estrada Bran, revealed specifically that she died from multiple head trauma that may have been caused by a blunt instrument, resulting in a massive hemorrhage.

In his summation of the trial, Justice Sandcroft said that the case for the prosecution was based purely on circumstantial evidence. He said that the Crown failed to provide the court with sufficient evidence beyond a reasonable doubt against Martinez.

It had been stated after the incident on March 4, 2018 that led to the toddler’s death, that there were indications that the child had been sexually assaulted both anally and via her genitalia, but it was stated in court that Dr. Estrada Bran testified that he had not found any recent injury in the child’s vagina.

Martinez had given a statement from the dock in which he denied that he committed the offence. He said he loved Baby Alyssa and he wouldn’t have done anything to harm her.

Martinez was represented by attorney Oscar Selgado, while the Crown was represented by Crown Counsel Portia Ferguson.