FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 22, 2015
Contact: Heather F. Williamson
Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office
20 East Market Street
Leesburg, VA 20176-2809
(703) 777-0242
ASHBURN MAN SENTENCED FOR CHILD ABUSE
JUDGE IMPOSES TWO YEAR PRISON TERM
LEESBURG, Virginia – October 1, 2015. Judge Burke F. McCahill sentenced Christopher Marlon Guzman, 24, to an active sentence of two years in the Virginia Department of Corrections in connection with two counts of child abuse and neglect. Guzman pled guilty to the charges in Loudoun County Circuit Court on June 26, 2015.
On separate occasions between October 2014 and January 2015, Guzman became frustrated and impatient with his infant son, who was having trouble going to sleep and would not stop crying. On one occasion, Guzman squeezed his infant son around the abdomen, to the point that he broke most of his son’s ribs. On another, Guzman shook the infant to the point where the boy lost consciousness. The shaking caused a head injury, persistent vomiting, a subdural hematoma and bilateral retinal hemorrhaging.
“Fortunately, this child is not expected to have any long term physical complications,” said Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Plowman. “Protecting the most vulnerable victims, especially in cases such as this where they are unable to speak for themselves, present a wide range of evidentiary challenges.”
In addition to the total active sentence of two years, McCahill imposed twelve years of suspended time and further ordered that Guzman be placed on five years of supervised probation upon his release from incarceration.
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