Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Brandon Rodrigo Juarez Resendiz, 26, of 201 S. Detroit St., Warsaw, was sentenced to 13 years for neglect of a dependent resulting in serious injury Monday in Kosciusko Superior Court I.
Juarez Resendiz was found guilty of neglect of a dependent resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 3 felony, on Thursday, March 19, following a three-day jury trial.
Juarez Resendiz will serve a total of 13 years; 10 years will be served in the Indiana Department of Correction, and three years will be suspended on probation. While on probation, Juarez Resendiz will be required to attend a domestic violence program.
A victim impact statement and report from probation officer Rhonda Wiesehan were submitted by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Sobek. Defense attorney Travis McConnell submitted 14 letters from friends and family of Juarez Resendiz.
Sobek brought up the case from 2023 against Juarez Resendiz for possession of cocaine, possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia. Sobek also brought up the open case against Juarez Resendiz for strangulation and domestic battery, a crime that allegedly occurred while Juarez Resendiz was out on bond for this case.
Sobek described the victim, an infant, as one of "the most vulnerable in our society” and stated the victim had 24 fractures, when even one fracture would have been enough to indicate neglect of a dependent resulting in serious injury.
McConnell spoke on Juarez Resendiz’s filmed interview from the trial and his “genuine shock.” McConnell recalled how Juarez Resendiz called himself “the dumbest father ever,” his genuine surprise by the child’s injuries and how no malice was intended. McConnell also brought up Juarez Resendiz completed the entirety of the pre-trial agreement.
Before sentencing, Juarez Resendiz said in his own defense, “I’ve been away from my kids for so long my son doesn’t recognize me … There’s nothing on this planet that I wished I could be more than a father, a protector … I hope you give me the opportunity to show, not just you, but the community my ability to be a good father and a good person.
