HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — A woman pleaded not guilty to charges related to the death of her 1-year-old child earlier this month.
On Thursday afternoon, Giltinan Aldan Ramangmou appeared in the Superior Court of Guam to answer to charges of murder as a first-degree felony, aggravated assault as a second-degree felony and child abuse as a third-degree felony.
Ramangmou’s charges stem from allegedly punching her 1-year-old son, who was later found by officers with the Guam Police Department to be pulseless, breathless and with multiple severe head injuries.
In the hearing, Ramangmou, who appeared via Zoom from the Department of Corrections Women’s Facility in Mangilao, was represented by Public Defender William Bischoff.
Bischoff entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Ramangmou and asserted her right to a speedy trial. Future hearings will be held before Judge Vernon Perez, according to Magistrate Judge Benjamin Sison Jr.
Bischoff also requested the Office of the Attorney General turn over all discovery.
“We’ve requested for several days now and the prosecution has been dragging their feet about it,” Bischoff said.
Boyfriend
In Ramangmaou’s magistrate’s complaint, the prosecution stated Ramangmou’s boyfriend and the child’s father, Paul John Cruz, told police he heard the child “crying hysterically” before seeing Ramangmou punching the child. Additionally, Cruz said he saw the child was missing his front teeth and his eyes appeared to be swollen shut before he told Ramangmou to call the police.
Although Cruz was not charged as Ramangmou’s co-defendant in the case, it was revealed in the arraignment hearing that Cruz had been indicted in the case on Nov. 9.
With Bischoff wondering if Cruz were to be arraigned at the hearing as well, Sison confirmed Cruz is scheduled to answer to charges on Nov. 29. Cruz was indicted on charges of child abuse and failure to provide assistance.
Death
After police officers arrived at her Dededo residence, they encountered Ramangmou, who allegedly was crying hysterically and yelling, “I should’ve taken him to the hospital, I’m so sorry, God!”
Ramangmou, according to court documents, told officers the child was on the bed but that he had fallen on his face. She said she treated the victim by putting ice on his head.
Police, however, saw the victim had “multiple severe head injuries” and that “rigor mortis” and “livor mortis” had set in on the child, which suggested several hours had passed before the authorities were contacted. The complaint stated that police were contacted about three hours after Cruz told Ramangmou to call.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Jeffrey Nine also conducted an initial assessment on the child’s injuries and found them to be consistent with “battered baby syndrome,” saying the child had injuries similar to that of a “child involved in a vehicle collision at a high rate of speed,” the complaint said.
Giltinan Ramangmou, appears via Zoom from the Department of Corrections Women’s Facility in Mangilao at her arraignment hearing in the Superior Court of Guam on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023. Ramangmou pleaded not guilty to charges related to the death of her 1-year-old son.
