Gomez jailed to keep her in Ephrata

EPHRATA — Maribel Gomez was jailed Tuesday by a judge to keep U.S. immigration officials from seizing her and disrupting her trial for allegedly fatally abusing her 2-year-old son.

Gomez is charged with homicide by abuse and first-degree manslaughter in the September 2003 death of her son, Rafael "Raffy" Gomez. The 32-year-old mother pleaded innocent in Grant County Superior Court and, until Tuesday, remained free and was living in Ephrata.

Grant County Deputy Prosecutor Carolyn Fair said if Grant County Superior Court Judge John Antosz didn't have Gomez booked into jail now, immigration officials would take her to Seattle for deportation hearings.

Prosecutors filed a motion asking Antosz, who is hearing the non-jury trial, to revoke the conditions of Gomez's release.

Fair recommended setting bail at $250,000, to ensure Gomez is not seized and the trial interrupted.

Antosz ordered Gomez held, without bail, for the next 48 hours. Her bail then jumps to $250,000.

Gomez is from Mexico and not a legal U.S. citizen, said Bobby Moser, her Moses Lake-based defense lawyer.

Moser argued there's no basis to revoke the original conditions of her release, saying she has not violated the terms of her conditional release during the previous three years and tried to leave the county.

"Putting her in jail at this point is inappropriate," Moser told Antosz.

"I have a lot of questions about the timing of this," Moser said in an interview, following Tuesday's proceedings. "I don't think this is going to impact the defense of the case."

Gomez arrived Tuesday at the Grant County courthouse in street clothes. During a morning recess, she was booked into Grant County Jail. She spent the rest of the day shackled at the ankles and dressed in a green prison jumpsuit.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) ordered Gomez detained, saying an investigation was recently initiated to determine whether she is subject to removal from the country.

An ICE public affairs official in Washington D.C. referred questions to agency spokeswoman Lorie Dankers in Seattle, who did not return messages seeking comment.

Grant County Prosecutor John Knodell said immigration officials in Spokane ran a check on Gomez, following her case's recent publicity. They discovered she's an illegal immigrant.

Gomez was charged when Raffy died after suffering a serious brain injury while in Gomez's care. During his short life, he had four skull fractures, two fractured legs, both shoulders broken, numerous abrasions, bruises and burns to his hand and tongue.

Prosecutors argue the injuries all occurred while he was living with his birth mother. During more than a year living with foster parents in Royal City, he was not injured.

Moser told the court Raffy was a clumsy kid who behaved abnormally. Raffy engaged in self-destructive behaviors, Moser said. He became increasingly fragile and eventually died after a minor, accidental fall while Gomez was feeding him, he said.

Prosecutors called Hollie Halliday, a former Royal City resident, to the witness stand Tuesday. Halliday was a daycare provider for Raffy from late January 2003 to late March 2003, hired by the boy's foster parents Bruce and Denise Griffith.

Halliday said Raffy did not exhibit self-destructive behaviors and was never accidentally injured while in her care. Raffy loved to dance and play games with her other kids, she said.

Halliday testified that Raffy would cry when Denise Griffith, Royal City, would leave him at the in-home daycare.

It took six weeks before Halliday earned Raffy's trust, she testified.

Halliday said Raffy was generally fearful of adult females.

The trial resumes today with more prosecution witnesses. They plan to call their final witnesses Monday.