Livermore Nanny Accused Of Trying To Smother Infant Pleads Not Guilty
PLEASANTON (CBS SF) -- The Livermore nanny charged with felony child abuse for allegedly getting caught on camera trying to smother the cries of a 13-month-old infant entered a not guilty plea in a Pleasanton courtroom Friday morning.
20-year-old nanny Moriah Gonzales walked into court with her sister and her lawyer to enter the plea, over two weeks after being arrested for her actions that were caught on video.
Court records say that on February 18, Gonzales was captured on a nanny camera at a home in Livermore, trying to calm a crying 13-month-old boy in her care referred to as "John Doe."
According to court documents, Gonzales "was holding him with her hands nearing his face. Moriah then placed her hands closer to Doe's face and the sounds went from clear and audible to a muffled cry."
"She was just taking care of the child and putting him down," maintained her attorney William DuBois.
The documents go on to state "Doe began to squirm and kick. He then went limp."
But Gonzales' lawyer insisted his client did nothing wrong.
"There's no evidence in this case of any injury whatsoever to this child, said DuBois.
The infant's parents, a couple identified only as Amanda and Nicole, hired Gonzales through the popular nanny-finding website Care.com. On Thursday, the site released a statement, saying "we are deeply troubled by this incident and our thoughts are with the family. We have proactively contacted law enforcement to provide whatever assistance we can."
For now, Gonzales is out on a $100,000 bond.
"She's demolished by this," said DuBois. "This ruins her whole life."
Gonzales has been ordered to stay away from anyone under the age of 18. Her lawyer is trying to get that amended to age 14 as he maintains her innocence.
"The child was not in any way mishandled or mistreated," said DuBois. "I think that story will be one of the real sub-stories of this case. I think you'll find that there's a real bond between the parents and the Livermore police department."
DuBois didn't elaborate on what what that might that might be. The defense lawyer now has access to the 3 CDs and 2 DVDs of evidence involved in the investigation. The pre-trial date is set for May 5.
