Before they leave the hospital, new parents are educated about the risks of shaking a newborn, whether it’s out of frustration or exhaustion. Tragically, it still happens. Recently, a father was arrested in connection with the brutal murder of his 6-day-old baby.
David Ruiz, 22, of Spring Valley, California, was arrested in February 2025 after the newborn died. He now faces serious charges. One neighbor described it as a “very ugly crime.”
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On February 19, police received a report of battery.
About 1:20 p.m. February 19, police and first responders responded to a report of a battery in Spring Valley, according to a news release from the San Diego County sheriff’s office. Both Rancho San Diego Station deputies and San Miguel Fire Department firefighters arrived at a home in the 500 block of Sacramento Avenue. What they discovered was deeply disturbing.
There, they found a newborn with fatal head trauma.
First responders located a male infant in the home on the living room floor. The baby had received “apparent trauma to his head,” according to the news release. Sadly, the infant was pronounced dead at the home.
The baby boy’s cause of death has since been determined.
A February 20 news release from the San Diego County sheriff’s office revealed the newborn’s cause of death.
“The Medical Examiner’s Office conducted the autopsy and concluded that the preliminary cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head,” it read.
Additionally, the manner of death was categorized as homicide.
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The father was arrested in the alleged murder of his 6-day-old son.
Ruiz, the baby’s biological father, was taken into police custody. He was ultimately arrested and charged with the murder of his newborn.
“At this stage of the investigation, the motivation and circumstances surrounding this tragic homicide are still unclear,” police officials shared in a statement, per CBS 8 San Diego.
A neighbor described it as a ‘very ugly crime.’
“I’m a little bit horrified because it was a very ugly crime,” one neighbor told CBS 8 San Diego.
The news outlet reported that Ruiz will be arraigned on one murder charge. He is being held without bail.
If you suspect child abuse, you can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453 (1-800-4-A-Child) or go to Childhelp.org. The hotline is available 24/7.
