Gabriel Fernandez

Eight-year-old Gabriel Fernandez suffered months of horrific abuse before being tortured and killed by his mother and her boyfriend. Gabriel suffered numerous injuries, including a fractured skull, 12 broken ribs and burns on his body. He was also forced to eat cat feces and slept bound and gagged inside a small cabinet. His death shocked the nation and exposed serious failures within the child welfare system. The brutality of the crime led to a sentence of Life Without the Possibility of Parole for Gabriel’s mother and the death penalty for the mother’s boyfriend.