The Santa Barbara District Attorney’s office charged a Lompoc man with murder on May 29 in connection to the death of his infant daughter, who died earlier this month at 26 days old.
Lompoc police arrested 27-year-old Jose Ramirez on May 24 after an investigation found that Ramirez’s daughter died from blunt force trauma alleged to have been inflicted by Ramirez, according to Lompoc Police Department Sergeant Agustin Arias.
Police officers were first alerted to the case when Lompoc hospital called on May 19; a child brought into the hospital was not breathing, and she later died. The pediatric doctor at the hospital said the child could have been sick, based on information given to the doctor by the parents, according to Arias. An autopsy revealed injuries inconsistent with an accident and “obvious signs of malicious intent,” Arias said. Police interviews with the child’s parents and family members revealed that Ramirez was with the child at the time of the injury, while the mother was confirmed to not be at home during this time, according to Arias.
Ramirez is being held at Santa Barbara County Jail, and his bail is currently set at $4 million. He is a registered sex offender in Santa Barbara County. His arraignment hearing will be at Lompoc Superior Court on June 11.