Opinion ID: 55743
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Interviews on February 10 & 11, 2005

Text: On the evening of February 10, Sergeant Vanessa Kahn of the Fort Gordon Military Police (“MP”) received a call from emergency room physicians reporting possible child abuse. Sergeant Kahn met Gutierrez and Hines at the hospital and then directed Gutierrez to meet her at the military police investigator’s office. At 1:30 a.m. that same evening, Sergeant Kahn advised Gutierrez of his Miranda rights, interviewed Gutierrez and then took his written statement. In his statement, Gutierrez averred that on February 8, he had placed C.G. in her car seat but forgot to place the safety restraint around her. Gutierrez placed the car seat on 5 the couch and then ran to the kitchen to turn off the stove. Gutierrez heard a crash, and C.G. began to cry. Gutierrez ran to the living room and found C.G. laying on the floor with her car seat on top of her. When Gutierrez picked C.G. up, she stopped crying and went to sleep. The following afternoon, Gutierrez was interviewed by Agent Brian Wilhelm, an investigator with the Criminal Investigation Division (“CID”) at Fort Gordon. After Agent Wilhelm advised Gutierrez of his Miranda rights, Gutierrez said that C.G. had fallen out of her car seat, off the couch, and onto the floor of their home. Gutierrez admitted that he sometimes got angry and yelled and that he had punched holes in the walls of his residence. Gutierrez stated that he got frustrated being a first-time father and “had some anger management problems.” Gutierrez admitted turning music up loud so he would not hear C.G. cry. Agent Wilhelm asked Gutierrez if he had mentioned C.G.’s arm injury to any neighbors, and Gutierrez said he had not. Agent Wilhelm then advised Gutierrez that he had already spoken with Sayers and that Gutierrez had told Sayers that C.G.’s arm was swollen from a bug bite. Gutierrez admitted that he had lied to Agent Wilhelm and then terminated the interview. Another CID investigator, Edward Lee Harris, went to Gutierrez’s residence on February 10 and took photographs of, among other things, the sofa from which 6 Gutierrez claimed C.G. had fallen. Harris estimated that the seat of the sofa was a little less than a foot off the ground. According to Harris, the residence was dirty and had a foul smell. Harris also observed a number of patched holes in a door and the walls and a damaged door frame. Hospital staff also notified Jessica Carraballo, an investigator with the Department of Children and Family Services, who came to the hospital to conduct an investigation. Carraballo interviewed Gutierrez, who told Carraballo that C.G.’s arm was injured at home when she fell from her car seat, off the sofa and onto the floor. Gutierrez said that he picked C.G. up and held her until she stopped crying and that he had not noticed any injury at that time. Later that day, however, a neighbor who was caring for C.G. pointed out to Gutierrez that C.G. had a bruised arm. Gutierrez then waited for his wife to come home from work to take C.G. to the hospital.