Turlock man faces life sentence after being convicted of killing infant daughter
A Turlock man was convicted of murder by a jury in the 2022 death of his infant daughter.
Joseph Rendon, 26, is facing life in prison on charges including felony child abuse causing death, according to the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office. He will be sentenced July 14.
On April 13, 2022, Rendon was watching his 2-month-old daughter, Araceli, at his residence alone. Around 3 p.m. that day, Rendon took Araceli to the hospital and said she had stopped breathing after he fed her.
The baby was pronounced dead shortly after she arrived at the hospital, according to a news release. A cause of death could not be determined at the time due to the lack of visible external injuries.
An autopsy, which was conducted the next day, showed that Araceli had multiple fractures to her skull and significant brain damage. The cause of death was determined to be related to blunt force trauma to the head.
Rendon admitted in an interview that he hit Araceli’s head against a metal object multiple times because she would not stop crying, the news release said.
The Turlock Police Department arrested Rendon and conducted the investigation.
This story was originally published April 16, 2025 at 12:44 PM.
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