New Sentencing Hearing for Man Convicted of Breaking Baby’s Bones
29-year-old Andrew Pedro Valdez, the Kent County man accused of harming an infant so badly that he broke 13 bones, has been granted a new sentencing hearing. The result is that the 11 year sentence he is currently serving may in fact get shorter in the future. And that would make Valdez’s future much brighter indeed.
Valdez is currently serving time on a 2011 conviction of child abuse, which is a sentence of at least 11 years behind bars. But Valdez, along with over 220 other Michigan inmates, petitioned the Michigan Supreme Court for new sentencing hearings. This comes in the wake of the High Court’s July ruling that guidelines mandating prison terms are actually unconstitutional.
The Michigan Supreme Court has already issued orders in 170 of those cases, one of which is Valdez’s case. He has been directed to return to the Kent County Circuit Court for another sentencing hearing. It now falls to Judge Leiber to determine whether or not Valdez’s 2012 sentence would have been any different, assuming that sentencing guidelines did not apply.
The incident that led to Valdez’s charges and conviction took place at York Creek Apartments in Comstock Park. Valdez was taking his girlfriend’s baby boy out of his infant car seat, however he was allegedly angry at the time, about having to take care of the baby. Later, when the babysitter noticed that something was wrong with the baby’s leg, the child’s mother took him to DeVos Children’s Hospital, and staff there contacted police about the possibility of abuse.
In total, the baby had 13 broken bones, including a broken leg, a broken arm, and numerous rib fractures. Valdez was charged with child abuse, though he maintained his innocence throughout. However, the jury found him guilty of first degree child abuse, and he was sentenced by Judge Dennis Leiber to a maximum of 22 ½ years in prison.
Under state law, first degree child abuse is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. However, because of a 2006 conviction for stealing a car, the Judge was able to increase Valdez’s sentence and depart from the state sentencing guidelines.
Valdez is currently incarcerated at Bellamy Creek Correctional Center in Ionia. If nothing were to change with regard to his sentence, his earliest possible release date would be in November of 2026.