Murder of Madyson Middleton

Madyson Middleton was an 8-year-old girl from Santa Cruz, California whose mother reported her missing from their apartment on July 25, 2015. Middleton had been lured into another apartment where she was strangled to death and disposed of in a dumpster.[1] The suspect was charged two days later and was identified as 15-year-old Adrian Gonzalez after Middleton's body was found.[2]

Madyson Middleton
Madyson "Maddy" Middleton
Born(2006-10-05)October 5, 2006
Mountain View, California, United States
DiedJuly 26, 2015(2015-07-26) (aged 8)
Santa Cruz, California, U.S.
Cause of deathStrangulation
Body discoveredJuly 26, 2015

Suspect

The suspect was identified as Adrian Gonzalez, who was 15 years old at the time and was charged with Middleton's murder. He confessed to duct-taping her mouth shut and sexually assaulting her before stabbing and strangling her to death. Gonzalez then dumped her body and watched the case closely, even asking random police officers questions about the crime.[3] He also had a unique obsession with yo-yos and writing "suicidal" posts on Instagram.[4]

Trial

Adrian Gonzalez pleaded not guilty as trial began in November 2017 as there were some controversies to prosecute Gonzalez as an adult because he was only 15 when he committed the murder. 2016 California Proposition 57 law was passed in 2016 where the judge can decide if the accused can be prosecuted as an adult.[5] In April 2021, Gonzalez was sentenced to juvenile prison where he will be incarcerated until he turns 25 in 2024.[6] [7]

See also

References
  1. "Teen allegedly lured 8-year-old Calif. girl into apartment before killing her, dumping body in recycling bin". WXMI. 2015-07-28. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  2. Martinez, Michael (29 July 2015). "Adrian Gonzalez charged as adult in death of CA girl, 8". CNN. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  3. Farrell, Paul (2015-07-29). "Adrian Gonzalez: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy.com. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  4. "Adrian Gonzalez: Will he be tried as a child in Madyson Middleton murder?". Santa Cruz Sentinel. 2017-08-16. Retrieved 2020-02-08.
  5. Copitch, Josh (2019-05-17). "Adrian Gonzalez could still be prosecuted as an adult, SB 1391 ruled unconstitutional". KSBW. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
  6. "AJ Gonzalez sentenced to 3 more years in jail for Maddy Middleton's murder". 27 April 2021.
  7. "Maddy Middleton's killer sentenced, could walk free in 2024". 28 April 2021.
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