West Odessa Toddler Death: Your Legal Rights When a Child Dies Under a Caregiver’s Supervision
If you are reading this page, you are probably sitting somewhere quiet at an hour when nothing feels quiet. You may be the mother of a child who was hurt or killed while you were at work, trusting someone you loved to keep your baby safe. You may be a grandparent, an aunt, a family friend — someone who heard the story and knew in your gut that the explanation did not make sense. You are here because you need to know what the law says, what the evidence shows, and whether anything can be done. We are going to tell you all of it.
We are Attorney911 — The Manginello Law Firm, PLLC. We are trial lawyers who take Texas wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases, and we are writing this page to you, not at you. What happened on West Miles Street in West Odessa on July 24, 2024, is something no parent should ever have to process. A one-year-old girl was brought to Medical Center Hospital in Odessa with a skull fracture to the back of her head. She died two days later, on July 26. Her stepfather, who was the only adult caring for her at the time, told Ector County Sheriff’s deputies she fell from a bed while he was playing video games. But the deputies measured that bed. It was 22 inches off the floor — on carpet. And the child’s mother, who was at work, along with the stepfather’s own father and stepmother, all told deputies a different version: that he claimed he did not know how the child was injured and said she had been asleep the whole time.
That contradiction — between a fall story told to law enforcement and a “I don’t know” story told to family — is where a civil case begins. And the physical evidence is where it gets built.
What you need to hear first, if you are the mother: This was not your fault. You went to work. You trusted a family member to watch your child. That is what working parents do. Whatever happened inside that house on West Miles Street happened while you were not there, and the person who was there has given accounts that do not match each other and do not match the laws of physics. The law gives you rights — and they are separate from the criminal case. The criminal prosecution may result in a prison sentence. It will not result in a single dollar of compensation for you, your child’s estate, or the future your daughter will not have. That is what the civil system is for.
Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911. The consultation is free. We do not get paid unless we win your case. And we handle these cases in English or in Spanish — hablamos Español — because the family hearing this news needs to understand it in the language they think in.
What Happened in West Odessa: The Case Overview
On July 24, 2024, a one-year-old girl sustained a posterior skull fracture — a fracture to the back of her head — while in the sole care of her stepfather at his father’s home on West Miles Street in West Odessa, an unincorporated part of Ector County. The child was taken to Medical Center Hospital, the major regional hospital in Odessa and the primary destination for serious injury cases from across Ector County. She died on July 26, 2024.
Ector County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded and investigated. The stepfather told them the toddler fell from a waist-high bed while he was playing video games. But three other people — the child’s mother, who was at work during the incident, and the stepfather’s own father and stepmother, who were connected to the home — all told deputies that the stepfather claimed he did not know how the child was injured and said she had been asleep the entire time she was in his care.
Then the deputies measured the bed. It sat 22 inches off the floor — atop a box spring, over carpeted flooring. That is not a waist-high bed. That is less than two feet. And a fall from that height, onto carpet, does not produce a fatal posterior skull fracture in a toddler without something else happening — something the fall story was designed to conceal.
On August 8, 2024, the stepfather was arrested and charged with capital murder of a person under 10 with a family violence finding, and injury to a child. His bond was set at $1 million.
This page is about what comes next for the family — specifically, the civil justice path that runs parallel to the criminal case and that most families do not even know exists.
Can a Family File a Civil Lawsuit When a Child Is Killed by a Caregiver?
Yes. In Texas, when a child dies because of someone else’s intentional or negligent conduct, the surviving parents — and in some cases the estate of the child — have the right to file a civil lawsuit for wrongful death and survival damages. This right exists independently of the criminal case. The criminal prosecution is the State of Texas v. the defendant. The civil case is the family v. the defendant. They are separate tracks, separate courts, separate standards of proof, and separate outcomes. A criminal conviction does not pay the family anything. A civil verdict or settlement does.
Texas law recognizes wrongful death claims under the Texas Wrongful Death Act, which allows surviving spouses, children, or parents of the decedent to bring a claim for the damages they have suffered because of the death. For a one-year-old child, the parents are the beneficiaries who bring this claim. The damages available include mental anguish, loss of the child’s companionship and society, and loss of the parent-child relationship — losses that Texas courts treat with profound seriousness, especially when the decedent is a young child whose entire life was ahead of her.
Texas recognizes wrongful death claims under the Texas Wrongful Death Act (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ch. 71), brought by the surviving spouse, children, or parents of the decedent.
Separately, a survival action allows the child’s estate to recover damages the child herself would have recovered had she lived — including the conscious pain and suffering she experienced between the injury and her death. That child survived approximately 48 hours from hospital admission on July 24 to her death on July 26. Those two days — the medical interventions, the physical suffering, the fear — are compensable through the survival claim, along with the medical expenses incurred during that period.
Here is the distinction most families do not understand until a lawyer explains it: the wrongful death claim compensates the family for what they lost. The survival claim compensates the child’s estate for what the child endured. Both can be pursued. Both matter. And both are separate from the criminal case, which compensates no one — it only punishes.
The criminal case and the civil case can also work together. If the stepfather is convicted of capital murder or injury to a child — or pleads guilty — that conviction can be used as conclusive proof of the underlying act in a civil case. The doctrine is sometimes called “conviction as conclusive proof,” and it means a criminal conviction for an offense involving violence establishes the act itself for civil purposes. The family does not have to re-prove what the criminal court already determined. This is one of the reasons the civil case is often filed promptly but developed in coordination with the criminal prosecution — the criminal findings become building blocks for the civil recovery.
If you are asking whether you have to wait for the criminal case to finish before you can file — the answer is no. The civil case can proceed independently. And there are strategic reasons to move quickly, which we will explain in the evidence-preservation section. The statute of limitations for wrongful death in Texas is generally two years from the date of death. In this case, that clock started on July 26, 2024. There may be tolling doctrines that apply — rules that pause or extend the deadline — but you should never assume the deadline is paused without confirming with a lawyer. Two years sounds like a long time. In a case involving a criminal investigation, an ongoing prosecution, medical records, CPS records, and insurance policies, it is not. If you want to learn more about how these cases work, our wrongful death practice page walks through the framework in more detail.
The Physical Evidence: Why a 22-Inch Fall Does Not Explain a Fatal Skull Fracture
This is the section where the science does the talking — and where a forensic biomechanics expert becomes the most important witness in the case.
The stepfather told deputies the toddler fell from a “waist-high bed.” Deputies measured the bed. It was 22 inches off the floor. That is one inch shy of two feet. It sat on a box spring, over carpeted flooring. For context, a standard toddler is roughly 28 to 32 inches tall at one year of age. The bed was lower than the child is tall.
Here is what biomechanics tells us about short falls in toddlers: a fall from 22 inches onto a carpeted surface generates a certain amount of kinetic energy — the product of the child’s mass times the height of the fall times the deceleration on impact. Carpet compresses. It absorbs energy. The deceleration distance is longer than it would be on concrete or wood. The forces transmitted to the skull in a short fall onto carpet are, in the vast majority of cases, insufficient to produce a depressed or diastatic skull fracture severe enough to cause death.
Posterior skull fractures — fractures to the back of the head — from short falls are rare in the pediatric forensic literature. When they do occur from falls, they are typically linear, non-depressed fractures that do not produce the kind of catastrophic brain injury that kills a child within 48 hours. A fatal posterior skull fracture in a one-year-old is far more consistent with inflicted trauma — a strike, a slam, a throw — than with a fall from less than two feet onto carpet.
The autopsy report from the Ector County Medical Examiner will be the document that confirms or refutes this analysis. The autopsy determines the mechanism of injury: was this blunt force trauma from an inflicted impact, or was it consistent with a fall? It examines the fracture pattern — linear, depressed, diastatic, branching — and the presence or absence of associated brain injury (subdural hematoma, subarachnoid hemorrhage, parenchymal contusion). It looks for signs of prior injury: healing fractures at different stages, old subdural collections, retinal hemorrhages — findings that suggest this was not the first time this child was hurt. And it establishes the timing of the injury relative to the time of presentation, which matters because the stepfather’s account of when the child was injured and when he noticed the injury may not match the medical evidence.
The medical records from Medical Center Hospital will also be critical. They document the child’s condition on arrival — was she conscious? Was she seizing? Was there bruising or swelling at the fracture site? Were there other injuries — old bruises, healing fractures, signs of prior trauma? The nursing notes, the imaging (CT scans of the head), the physician observations — these are the records that build the medical case, and they need to be requested early to ensure completeness.
The contradiction in the stepfather’s own statements is the other pillar. He told deputies one story: the child fell from the bed while he was playing video games. He told his father and stepmother and the child’s mother a different story: he did not know how the child was injured and she had been asleep the entire time. When a caregiver gives materially different accounts of how a child was injured to different people — especially when one version is given to law enforcement after the death and another version was given to family members before — that is evidence of consciousness of guilt. It is not proof by itself. But combined with physical evidence that the fall story is physically implausible, it builds a civil case for intentional infliction of harm — not an accident, not a fall, but battery.
This is why we retain a forensic biomechanics expert in cases like this. The expert takes the known facts — the bed height, the carpet, the child’s age and weight, the fracture type and location — and applies established biomechanical principles to determine whether the fall explanation is physically possible. In many cases, the expert’s conclusion is that the described mechanism cannot produce the observed injury. That opinion, presented to a jury, is devastating to a fall defense — and it is the kind of analysis that a generalist who handles occasional personal injury cases would never think to commission.
If your child has suffered a skull fracture or brain injury and the explanation does not make sense, the biomechanics analysis is the tool that exposes the truth.
Who Can Be Held Liable in a Toddler Death Case
In a child death case involving a caregiver, the liability map has more than one layer. The obvious defendant is the person who caused the harm. But the question that determines whether there is any money to recover is usually: who has insurance, and does the insurance cover this?
The Caregiver — Direct Liability
The stepfather was the sole caregiver at the time of the fatal injury. He gave contradictory accounts of what happened. The physical evidence contradicts his fall narrative. He has been charged with capital murder of a person under 10 with a family violence finding and injury to a child. In a civil case, the claims against him would include battery (intentional infliction of harm), wrongful death, and potentially negligent supervision — he was responsible for the child’s care, he admitted he was distracted by video games, and the child died on his watch.
The civil liability against the direct actor is extraordinarily strong in this case. The criminal charges, the contradictory statements, and the physical evidence create a powerful case. But here is the hard truth: an incarcerated individual with no apparent assets, held on a $1 million bond, is unlikely to have the financial resources to satisfy a civil judgment. You can get a verdict against him. Collecting on that verdict is a different matter. This is why the analysis has to look beyond the direct actor to every other party whose negligence may have contributed to this child being in harm’s way.
The Homeowner — Negligent Supervision and Premises Liability
The home on West Miles Street belonged to the stepfather’s father. This is where the child was being cared for when she sustained the fatal injury. If the homeowner knew or should have known that the stepfather was unfit to care for a toddler — if there were prior incidents of violence, substance abuse, anger issues, or prior CPS reports involving this household — and nevertheless permitted the caregiving arrangement to take place in his home, a negligent supervision or negligent entrustment theory may reach the homeowner’s own liability.
This matters because a homeowner may carry homeowner’s insurance, and that insurance may provide a source of coverage for negligence-based claims — even when the intentional-act exclusion would bar coverage for the direct perpetrator’s intentional conduct. The theory is not that the homeowner committed the battery. The theory is that the homeowner was independently negligent in allowing an unfit person to care for a child in his home, and that independent negligence is what the insurance may cover.
Whether this theory works depends on the specific policy language, the facts established about the homeowner’s knowledge, and the current state of Texas law on how intentional-act exclusions interact with concurrent negligence claims. This is one of the most contested areas in Texas insurance law, and it is where having a lawyer who understands the insurance claim landscape from the inside — not just as a claimant’s lawyer, but as someone who has sat on the other side — makes a difference.
The Homeowner’s Insurance Carrier
If a homeowner’s insurance policy exists for the West Miles Street residence, it must be identified and examined immediately. The policy may include liability coverage, medical payments coverage, and various exclusions. Most homeowner’s policies exclude intentional acts and criminal acts — meaning if the stepfather intentionally struck the child, his conduct would not be covered. But the homeowner’s own negligent supervision — a failure to protect — is a negligence claim, not an intentional tort, and may fall outside the intentional-act exclusion depending on how the policy is written and how Texas courts have interpreted the concurrent-negligence exception.
The policy also needs to be checked for medical payments coverage, which can provide a limited payment for medical expenses regardless of liability — sometimes available even when liability coverage is disputed. And the policy limits need to be identified, because they define the ceiling of what the insurance carrier can be asked to pay.
This is the coverage pathway that could materially increase the recoverable value in this case. Without it, the case is a strong liability against a defendant who cannot pay. With it, the case becomes a strong liability against a homeowner whose insurer may be obligated to respond to a negligence claim.
Homeowner’s Insurance and Child Injury Claims in Texas: The Coverage Battleground
This is where Lupe Peña’s experience on the inside of the insurance industry becomes the advantage the reader needs. Lupe spent years as an insurance-defense attorney at a national defense firm — the rooms where adjusters and their software decide how to value, deny, delay, and defend claims. He knows how carriers set reserves in the first 48 hours, how they choose IME doctors, how they use surveillance and social-media mining, and how they engineer delays aimed at the statute of limitations. He now uses that knowledge for injured families. When the question is whether a homeowner’s policy will respond to a negligent supervision claim in a child death case, the answer is not found in a brochure — it is found in the policy itself, in the case law interpreting it, and in the pressure applied to the insurer at the right moment.
Here is how the insurance analysis works in a case like this:
Step 1: Identify the policy. The homeowner’s insurance policy for the West Miles Street residence must be identified through discovery. The policy number, the carrier, the policy period, the coverage limits, and the exclusions all matter. If the homeowner had insurance at the time of the incident, the policy is the primary target for recovery.
Step 2: Analyze the exclusions. Most homeowner’s policies contain exclusions for intentional acts and criminal acts. The insurer will argue that the child’s death was caused by an intentional or criminal act and that coverage is therefore barred. This is where the negligent supervision theory becomes the key — the claim against the homeowner is not that he intentionally harmed the child, but that he was negligent in allowing the caregiving arrangement to exist in his home. The question is whether the intentional-act exclusion bars the entire claim or whether the homeowner’s independent negligence creates a separate covered cause of action.
Step 3: Examine medical payments coverage. Many homeowner’s policies include medical payments coverage — a no-fault provision that pays medical expenses for injuries occurring on the premises, up to a modest limit (often $1,000 to $5,000). This coverage may apply regardless of liability and regardless of whether the injury was intentional. It is a small but real source of recovery.
Step 4: Apply the Stowers doctrine. In Texas, if a viable negligence theory triggers coverage and a qualifying settlement demand is made to the insurer within the policy limits, the insurer faces a choice: settle within the limits or expose itself to a Stowers claim — a bad-faith action for failing to settle a claim within the policy when a reasonable insurer would have done so. This is leverage, and it only exists if the negligence theory is strong enough to trigger coverage. That is why the negligent supervision investigation — the CPS records, the homeowner’s knowledge, the prior history — is not just about liability. It is about unlocking insurance coverage.
The honest assessment is this: if no homeowner’s insurance exists, or if the policy unambiguously excludes all claims arising from this incident, the realistic recovery is limited to whatever assets the direct actor possesses — which, based on what is known, appear to be negligible. If homeowner’s insurance exists and the negligent supervision theory is viable, the recovery potential increases significantly. If CPS prior reports or the homeowner’s knowledge of the stepfather’s unfitness can be established, the negligent supervision track could materially increase recoverable value — potentially into the range where a meaningful settlement is possible.
For families dealing with premises liability questions in a child injury case, the insurance analysis is the case. You cannot skip it.
CPS Records and Prior Reports: Why They Matter in Child Death Cases
Texas law requires the reporting of child abuse or neglect. Mandatory reporters — teachers, doctors, nurses, daycare workers, and others — who suspect abuse are legally required to report it. Failure to report carries potential civil and criminal liability. The Ector County Sheriff’s Office investigation and any Child Protective Services involvement generate records — and those records may contain prior reports or investigations involving this household that would establish a pattern.
CPS records are among the most important and most difficult-to-obtain pieces of evidence in a child death case. They are critical for two reasons:
First, prior reports establish notice. If CPS had been called to this household before — if there were prior reports of injuries, unsafe conditions, or dangerous caregiving — those reports would establish that the homeowner had notice that the stepfather was unfit to care for a toddler. Notice is the foundation of a negligent supervision claim. Without it, the homeowner can argue he had no reason to know there was a problem. With it, the argument flips: he knew or should have known, and he did nothing.
Second, prior reports may reveal a pattern of abuse. If the child had prior injuries — healing fractures, old bruises, prior emergency room visits — the medical and CPS records may show a pattern of escalating violence that culminated in the fatal injury. This supports both the intentional-tort theory against the direct actor and the negligent supervision theory against the homeowner.
The problem is access. CPS records are confidential under Texas law, and obtaining them in civil litigation requires a court order. The records are subject to strict confidentiality protections, and the process for getting them is not something a family can do on their own. A lawyer must file the appropriate motion, demonstrate good cause, and secure the order before the records are destroyed or become unavailable. This is a time-sensitive process — CPS records can be purged on retention schedules, and delay can mean the difference between having the evidence and not.
This is why we say: the day you call is the day the clock starts working for you instead of against you. Every day that passes is a day the evidence gets colder, the records get closer to routine destruction, and the insurance company gets more time to build its denial.
Evidence Preservation: What Exists, Who Holds It, and How Fast It Disappears
In a child death case, the evidence that will win or lose the civil case is being held by multiple agencies, each with its own retention schedule, its own access rules, and its own willingness to share. Here is the inventory — what exists, who has it, how fast it can legally disappear, and what we do to freeze it.
Medical Records — Medical Center Hospital
What they are: Admission records from July 24 through death on July 26 — emergency department notes, nursing assessments, physician orders, CT imaging of the head, neurosurgical consultations, vital signs, medication administration records, and the death summary. These records establish the nature and severity of the skull fracture, the timing of injury versus presentation, the treatment rendered, and the child’s condition during the 48-hour survival period.
Who holds them: Medical Center Hospital’s medical records department.
How fast they disappear: Hospital records are generally retained for years under Texas and federal retention requirements. However, the completeness of the record — nursing notes, physician addenda, imaging — is best ensured by requesting them early. Late entries and addenda may be added to the chart in the days and weeks after the event, and early requests capture a more complete picture. Some auxiliary records (monitor strips, imaging raw data) may be purged on shorter schedules than the main chart.
What we do: A medical records request is sent immediately, with an authorization signed by the personal representative of the child’s estate. We request the complete chart — not just the discharge summary — including all imaging, all nursing notes, all consultant notes, and all addenda.
Autopsy Report — Ector County Medical Examiner
What it is: The autopsy determines the mechanism of injury (blunt force trauma versus fall), the fracture pattern (posterior skull fractures from falls are rare, as we discussed), the timing of injury, the presence or absence of prior healing fractures suggesting chronic abuse, and the cause and manner of death. The toxicology panel may also be relevant.
Who holds it: The Ector County Medical Examiner’s Office (or the applicable medical examiner for Ector County).
How fast it disappears: The autopsy itself is likely complete — it was performed shortly after death on July 26. But the written report and toxicology results can take weeks to finalize. The report does not disappear, but delay in requesting it means delay in getting the biomechanics expert started on the analysis.
What we do: We request the complete autopsy report, including the protocol, the microscopic slides, the toxicology, and all photographs. We also request the medical examiner’s case file — which may contain investigator notes, scene photographs, and police reports that are part of the ME’s investigation but not part of the final autopsy report.
Crime Scene Evidence — Ector County Sheriff’s Office
What it is: Crime scene photographs of the bedroom, the bed, and the surrounding area. The bed measurements documenting the 22-inch height on carpet. Any physical evidence collected from the scene. The interview statements from the stepfather, the mother, the father, and the stepmother — which establish the contradictory accounts that form the civil liability bedrock.
Who holds it: Ector County Sheriff’s Office, as part of the criminal case file.
How fast it disappears: Crime scene evidence in a capital murder case is not going to be destroyed — the criminal prosecution ensures its preservation. But access is the issue. The criminal case file is controlled by the prosecutor’s office, and civil access may require a motion or may need to wait until the criminal case concludes. The statements may contain additional incriminating details beyond what has been reported publicly.
What we do: We coordinate with the criminal prosecutor’s office to obtain access to the case file or to stay the civil discovery until the criminal case concludes, depending on the strategy. We may file a motion to obtain the evidence, or we may work through the criminal discovery process to get what we need. Either way, we do not wait passively — we initiate the process early.
CPS History — Texas Department of Family and Protective Services
What it is: Any prior reports, investigations, or findings involving this household, the stepfather, the mother, or the child. Prior reports would establish notice for the homeowner’s negligent supervision theory and could reveal a pattern of abuse or dangerous caregiving.
Who holds it: Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), CPS division.
How fast it disappears: CPS records are subject to retention schedules and can be destroyed after the retention period expires. This is the most time-sensitive record in the case — once it is gone, it cannot be recreated.
What we do: We immediately seek a court order to obtain the CPS records. The records are confidential under Texas law and require a court order for discovery access. The motion must demonstrate good cause and must be filed before the records are purged. This is one of the most urgent steps in the case.
Homeowner’s Insurance Policy
What it is: The insurance policy for the West Miles Street residence — including the declarations page, the policy form, all endorsements, and any application materials. The policy identifies available coverage, policy limits, exclusions (intentional act, criminal act), and any medical payments coverage.
Who holds it: The homeowner and his insurance carrier.
How fast it disappears: The policy itself does not disappear, but the insurer may disclaim coverage quickly if it is not put on notice and if a preservation demand is not issued. The insurer may also cancel the policy or fail to preserve application materials and underwriting files if not put on formal notice.
What we do: A preservation demand letter is sent to the homeowner and the insurance carrier immediately, demanding that all policies, correspondence, claims files, and related materials be preserved. This letter creates a legal obligation to preserve the evidence and exposes the insurer to spoliation claims if materials are destroyed after the demand is received.
When a party lets required evidence die after receiving a preservation demand, the law provides remedies — an adverse-inference instruction (the jury may assume the lost evidence was as damaging as the plaintiff says it was), sanctions, and in some circumstances a separate claim for the destruction itself. The bar for the harshest sanctions is high, but the leverage begins the moment the letter is on file.
The Insurance Adjuster’s Playbook: What to Expect and How to Counter
If there is homeowner’s insurance in this case — and there may be — the family needs to understand that the insurance company’s goal is not to help them. The insurance company’s goal is to pay as little as possible, as slowly as possible, and to close the file. Lupe Peña knows this because he used to be the person on the other side, engineering these outcomes for a national defense firm. Here are the plays you will see — and the counters we deploy.
Play 1: The “Friendly Check-In” Call
The play: Within days of the incident, an adjuster calls the family — often the mother — sounding warm and sympathetic. “I just want to check on you and your family.” “Can you tell me what happened?” The call is recorded. Everything the mother says will be transcribed, taken out of context, and used against her. If she says anything that could be twisted to suggest she was partly at fault — “I should have been home” — that statement becomes a defense exhibit.
The counter: Do not talk to the insurance adjuster. Do not give a recorded statement. Do not answer questions about the incident. The adjuster is not your friend. The adjuster is a professional whose job is to minimize the claim. Every word you say is being evaluated for its value to the defense. When you have a lawyer, the adjuster talks to the lawyer — not to you. That is one of the most important things a lawyer does in the first 72 hours: puts a wall between the family and the insurance company.
Play 2: The Quick Settlement Offer
The play: The insurer offers a small amount of money — sometimes before the funeral — with a release attached. The release, once signed, extinguishes all claims against all parties, including claims the family did not know they had. The offer is designed to be just enough to feel like something when a family is drowning in funeral expenses and missing work — and a fraction of what the case is actually worth.
The counter: Never sign anything from an insurance company without having a lawyer review it. A release is a legal document that permanently surrenders rights. The time to talk about settlement is after the evidence has been gathered, the medical records have been reviewed, the CPS records have been obtained, the biomechanics expert has rendered an opinion, and the insurance policy has been analyzed — not before the funeral.
Play 3: The “It Was an Accident” Framing
The play: The insurer frames the death as an unavoidable accident — a tragic fall, an unforeseeable event, nobody’s fault. This framing serves two purposes: it minimizes the insurer’s exposure (accidents are worth less than intentional acts) and it steers the family toward accepting a small settlement rather than pursuing the full claim.
The counter: The physical evidence contradicts the accident narrative. The bed was 22 inches off the floor on carpet. The stepfather’s own family members told deputies he said he did not know how the child was injured. The biomechanics expert will testify that a fall from that height onto that surface cannot produce a fatal posterior skull fracture. The case is not an accident case. It is an intentional-tort case with a negligence overlay — and the damages in an intentional-tort case are qualitatively different from an accident case, including the potential for exemplary (punitive) damages that are uncapped because the underlying conduct constitutes a felony.
Play 4: The Delay Aimed at the Statute of Limitations
The play: The insurer stalls. Requests more documentation. Asks for extensions. Promises to “evaluate the claim” and then goes silent for months. The goal is to run the clock — to push the family past the statute of limitations, at which point the claim is forever barred.
The counter: The statute of limitations for wrongful death in Texas is generally two years from the date of death. In this case, that is July 26, 2026. We file the lawsuit before the deadline — period. We do not rely on the insurer’s good faith to resolve the claim. The filing of the lawsuit stops the limitations clock and puts the case on a court schedule that the insurer cannot control. There may be tolling doctrines that pause the clock during the pendency of the criminal prosecution, but you should never assume tolling applies without confirming with a lawyer. The safest approach is always to file within the standard limitations period.
Play 5: The Social Media and Surveillance Watch
The play: The insurer’s investigators monitor the family’s social media accounts. They look for photos or posts that could be used to undermine the claim — a photo of the mother smiling at a family gathering, a post about going out with friends, anything that could be framed as “she’s not really grieving” or “she has moved on.” They may also conduct physical surveillance.
The counter: Do not post about the case, the child, the incident, or the legal process on social media. Set all accounts to private. Do not accept friend requests from people you do not know. Understand that anything you post can and will be used by the defense — not because it reflects the full truth, but because a single frame lifted from a life can be made to look like anything in a courtroom. We advise every client on social media protocols from the first meeting.
What This Case Is Worth: An Honest Assessment
We promised you honesty, so here it is: the value of this case depends almost entirely on collectibility — on whether there is insurance or assets to pay a judgment — not on the strength of liability, which is extraordinary.
The Damages Are Catastrophic
If this case were against a solvent defendant — a corporation, a government entity, an insured party with substantial coverage — the damages would justify a multi-million-dollar exposure. Here is what the damage model looks like:
Wrongful death damages: The mother’s mental anguish, loss of companionship, loss of the parent-child relationship. In Texas, the death of a young child carries profound non-economic damage value. Jurors are parents. They understand what it means to lose a child — and Texas juries have historically returned significant awards in child wrongful death cases. These damages are not capped in Texas for intentional torts or felony conduct.
Survival damages: The child’s conscious pain and suffering during the approximately 48 hours from hospital admission to death — the physical suffering, the medical fear, the interventions. Plus the medical expenses incurred during that period. These damages belong to the child’s estate and are recoverable through a survival action.
Exemplary (punitive) damages: Texas generally caps exemplary damages, but the cap does not apply when the defendant’s conduct constitutes a felony. If the stepfather is convicted of capital murder — a felony — the exemplary damages cap is exempted, and a jury could award punitive damages without the statutory ceiling that applies in ordinary negligence cases. This is one of Texas’s strongest advantages in wrongful death cases involving criminal conduct.
Lost earning capacity: This is a recognized element of wrongful death damages in Texas, even for a young child. It requires expert economic testimony and is necessarily speculative — but it is recoverable as a proven element with the right expert framework.
The Collectibility Problem
The dominant constraint is collectibility. The direct actor is an incarcerated individual with no apparent assets, held on a $1 million bond. A multi-million-dollar verdict against him is a piece of paper — uncollectible without assets or insurance. The realistic recovery is driven by whatever insurance coverage exists.
If no homeowner’s insurance exists: The realistic recovery range is low — potentially $50,000 or less, depending on whether the direct actor has any assets, future earning capacity, or other sources of recovery. A judgment against an incarcerated defendant with no assets is, in practical terms, uncollectible.
If homeowner’s insurance exists with a negligent supervision theory: The recovery range increases significantly, potentially into the $100,000 to $750,000 range, depending on the policy limits, the strength of the negligent supervision evidence (CPS history, homeowner’s knowledge), and the insurer’s willingness to settle within the policy limits under Stowers pressure.
If CPS prior reports or the homeowner’s knowledge of unfitness can be established: The negligent supervision track could materially increase recoverable value, potentially pushing toward the higher end of the range or beyond, depending on the policy limits and the strength of the evidence.
We do not promise a specific dollar outcome. We cannot. What we can do is tell you honestly: the liability is as strong as it gets. The question is whether there is a pocket to pay for it. That question is answered through investigation — and that investigation needs to start now.
Past results depend on the facts of each case and do not guarantee future outcomes.
The First 72 Hours: What to Do If Your Child Has Been Injured or Killed While in Someone Else’s Care
If you are the mother, the father, the grandparent, or the legal representative of a child who has been hurt or killed while in someone else’s care, here is what needs to happen — and what should not happen — in the hours and days after the worst moment of your life.
Do Not Give a Recorded Statement to Any Insurance Company
Not to the homeowner’s insurance. Not to the renter’s insurance. Not to any adjuster who calls with a sympathetic voice. Anything you say will be transcribed and used against you. If an adjuster calls, say: “I am not giving a statement at this time. Please contact my attorney.” Then call us.
Do Not Sign Anything
Not a release. Not a medical authorization. Not a “proof of loss” form. Not a settlement offer. Not anything. If someone puts a document in front of you and asks you to sign it, do not sign it. Bring it to a lawyer. A release signed in grief is a release that lasts forever.
Do Not Post on Social Media
Do not post about the incident, the child, the investigation, the criminal case, or your feelings. Set your accounts to private. Do not accept new friend requests. Defense investigators are monitoring social media from the moment the case becomes public. A single post — even a well-meaning one — can be taken out of context and used to diminish your suffering in front of a jury.
Do Secure the Medical Records
Request the complete medical records from Medical Center Hospital — the full chart, not just the discharge summary. These records are the foundation of the medical case. They document the injury, the treatment, the child’s condition, and the 48-hour survival period that underlies the survival claim.
Do Request the Autopsy Report
Contact the Ector County Medical Examiner’s Office and request the complete autopsy report, including the protocol, toxicology, microscopic slides, and photographs. This report determines the mechanism of injury and rules out or confirms prior abuse.
Do Seek a Court Order for CPS Records
CPS records are confidential and require a court order. If there were prior reports involving this household, those records are the key to the negligent supervision theory — and they are on a retention schedule that means they can be destroyed. This is the most time-sensitive step in the entire case.
Do Identify the Homeowner’s Insurance Policy
Find out whether the homeowner on West Miles Street had insurance. The policy is the potential source of recovery. Without it, the case may be a strong liability against a defendant who cannot pay. With it, the case may have real value.
Do Contact a Child Injury Attorney
Not just a personal injury lawyer — a lawyer who understands child death cases, biomechanics, CPS records, insurance coverage analysis, and the interplay between criminal and civil proceedings. These cases are not like car accident cases. They require specific expertise, specific experts, and a specific investigative sequence. The day you call is the day the preservation letters go out, the records requests start, and the evidence begins to be frozen.
Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911. The consultation is free. We are available 24/7 — not an answering service, live staff. Hablamos Español.
How We Build the Proof Story: From Preservation to Verdict
Here is how a case like this is actually built — the chronological walk from the day you call to the day the jury returns a verdict or the insurer writes a check.
Week One: The preservation letter goes out — to the homeowner, the insurance carrier, the hospital, and any other party holding evidence. This letter creates a legal duty to preserve evidence and exposes them to spoliation claims if they destroy anything after receiving it. The medical records request goes to Medical Center Hospital. The autopsy report request goes to the Ector County Medical Examiner. A motion is filed to obtain CPS records. The homeowner’s insurance policy is identified through discovery.
Weeks Two Through Four: The records begin to come in. The medical chart is reviewed — by us and by a forensic medical expert who can identify the injury patterns, the timing, and any signs of prior trauma. The autopsy report is analyzed — by us and by a forensic pathologist who can explain the fracture pattern and the mechanism of injury. The CPS records, if obtained, are reviewed for prior reports and investigations. The homeowner’s insurance policy is analyzed for coverage, exclusions, and limits.
Month Two and Beyond: The biomechanics expert is retained. This expert takes the known facts — the 22-inch bed height, the carpeted floor, the child’s age and weight, the fracture type and location — and applies established principles to determine whether the fall explanation is physically possible. The expert’s opinion is reduced to a written report that will be admissible at trial. The crime scene evidence and interview statements are obtained from the ECSO case file, either through coordination with the prosecutor or through a motion. Depositions are taken — of the homeowner, of the responding deputies, of the medical examiner, of anyone with knowledge of the child’s care and the circumstances of the injury.
The Criminal-Civil Coordination: The civil case is coordinated with the criminal prosecution. If the stepfather is convicted, the conviction is used as conclusive proof of the act in the civil case — we do not have to re-prove what the criminal court already determined. If he pleads guilty, the plea is an admission that can be used in the civil case. If he is acquitted, the civil case can still proceed — the civil standard of proof (preponderance of the evidence) is lower than the criminal standard (beyond a reasonable doubt), and a civil verdict can be obtained even when a criminal conviction cannot.
The Value Build: As the evidence comes in, the value of the case is built — not by speculation, but by the specific facts established. The medical records prove the injury and the suffering. The autopsy proves the mechanism. The biomechanics expert proves the fall story is impossible. The CPS records prove the homeowner’s notice. The insurance policy defines the ceiling. The criminal conviction (if obtained) proves the act. Each piece of evidence adds a dollar figure to the case — and each piece is something the insurer has to account for when deciding whether to settle or fight.
Resolution: The case resolves through settlement or verdict. If the insurance carrier agrees to settle within the policy limits under Stowers pressure, the case resolves without a trial. If the carrier refuses, the case goes to trial — and a jury of Ector County residents decides what the child’s life was worth and what the family’s suffering is worth. The jury that decides this case will be twelve people from the reader’s own community — people who understand what it means to trust someone with your child and have that trust betrayed.
Why This Firm: Ralph Manginello and Lupe Peña
We are not the firm that writes a letter and waits for the insurer to call back. We are the firm that puts the evidence on lockdown the day you call, that retains the biomechanics expert who can explain why a 22-inch fall onto carpet cannot kill a toddler, and that knows the insurance industry from the inside because Lupe Peña used to work there.
Ralph P. Manginello has spent 27+ years in Texas courtrooms, including federal court. He is admitted to the State Bar of Texas (Bar #24007597, admitted November 6, 1998) and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. He was a journalist before he was a lawyer — he knows how to find the story the evidence tells and how to tell it to a jury. He is the managing partner of the firm, lead counsel in the active $10M+ hazing wrongful death lawsuit in Harris County, and a member of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association and the Houston Bar Association. Ralph does not just file cases. He builds them — record by record, witness by witness, fact by fact — until the other side can see that fighting is more expensive than settling. Learn more about Ralph.
Lupe Peña is the firm’s secret weapon in insurance cases. He is a former insurance-defense attorney who spent years at a national defense firm — the rooms where adjusters and their software decide how to deny, delay, and devalue claims like yours. He knows how carriers set reserves in the first 48 hours. He knows how they choose IME doctors to produce favorable reports. He knows how they use surveillance and social-media mining. He knows the delay tactics aimed at the statute of limitations. And now he uses all of that knowledge for injured families. Lupe is admitted to the State Bar of Texas (Bar #24084332, admitted 2012) and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. He is fluent in Spanish — he conducts full client consultations in Spanish without an interpreter. Learn more about Lupe.
The firm has recovered $50 million+ in aggregate, including $5M+ in brain-injury settlements, $3.8M+ in amputation settlements, $2.5M+ in truck-crash recoveries, and millions in wrongful death cases. These are marketing figures — past results depend on the facts of each case and do not guarantee future outcomes. But they tell you something about the level of case we handle and the level of fight we bring.
We work on contingency. That means: we do not get paid unless we win your case. The fee is 33.33% before trial and 40% if the case goes to trial. You do not pay anything out of pocket. We front the costs of the investigation — the experts, the records requests, the court filings — and those costs are repaid from the recovery. If there is no recovery, you owe us nothing. That is not a marketing line. It is the structure of the engagement.
We serve families in English and in Spanish. Hablamos Español. Lupe conducts full consultations in Spanish without an interpreter — because the family hearing the worst news of their lives needs to understand every word in the language they think in.
Call 1-888-ATTY-911. The consultation is free. The call is confidential. And the person who answers is a live staff member, 24/7 — not an answering service.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I file a civil lawsuit if my child was killed by a caregiver?
Yes. In Texas, the surviving parents of a child who has been killed by someone else’s intentional or negligent conduct have the right to file a wrongful death lawsuit. The child’s estate may also bring a survival action for the child’s conscious pain and suffering before death. These civil rights exist independently of the criminal case — the criminal prosecution punishes the offender, but it does not compensate the family. The civil case is the only path to financial recovery.
Does a criminal conviction help the civil case?
Yes, significantly. In Texas, a criminal conviction for an offense involving violence can be used as conclusive proof of the underlying act in a civil case. This means if the stepfather is convicted of capital murder or injury to a child, the family does not have to re-prove what the criminal court already determined — the conviction establishes the act itself. A guilty plea is even stronger, because it is an admission under oath. Even if the defendant is acquitted criminally, the civil case can still proceed under the lower burden of proof (preponderance of the evidence versus beyond a reasonable doubt).
How long do I have to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Texas?
The statute of limitations for wrongful death in Texas is generally two years from the date of death. In this case, the child died on July 26, 2024, so the deadline would generally be July 26, 2026. There may be tolling doctrines that pause or extend the deadline — particularly when the defendant is facing criminal prosecution — but you should never assume the deadline is extended without confirming with a lawyer. The safest approach is always to file within the standard two-year period and not rely on tolling.
What if the person who killed my child has no money?
This is the most painful and most common question in child death cases. If the direct perpetrator has no assets, a verdict against them may be uncollectible. But the analysis does not stop there. We look at every other party whose negligence may have contributed to the child being in harm’s way — the homeowner who allowed the caregiving arrangement, the insurance carrier that may cover negligent supervision, any institution that had a duty to protect the child. The question is not just “who did this?” but “whose insurance can pay for what happened?”
Will homeowner’s insurance cover a child death that happened in the home?
It depends. Most homeowner’s policies exclude intentional acts and criminal acts, meaning the direct perpetrator’s intentional conduct would not be covered. But a negligent supervision claim against the homeowner — based on the homeowner’s knowledge of the perpetrator’s unfitness and failure to protect the child — is a negligence claim that may fall outside the intentional-act exclusion, depending on the policy language and Texas law. This is one of the most contested areas in Texas insurance law, and the answer requires a careful analysis of the specific policy and the specific facts.
What is a survival action and how is it different from wrongful death?
A wrongful death claim compensates the family for what they lost — mental anguish, loss of companionship, loss of the parent-child relationship. A survival action compensates the child’s estate for what the child endured — conscious pain and suffering between the injury and death, medical expenses, and other damages the child could have recovered had she lived. In this case, the child survived approximately 48 hours from hospital admission to death, and the survival claim captures the suffering during that period. Both claims can be pursued together.
Can I get punitive damages in a child death case in Texas?
Yes, if the conduct that caused the death qualifies. Texas generally caps exemplary (punitive) damages, but the cap does not apply when the defendant’s conduct constitutes a felony. If the stepfather is convicted of capital murder — a felony — the exemplary damages cap is exempted, and a jury could award punitive damages without the statutory ceiling. This is one of Texas’s strongest advantages in wrongful death cases involving criminal conduct.
How do I get CPS records in a child death case?
CPS records are confidential under Texas law and require a court order for access in civil litigation. A lawyer must file a motion demonstrating good cause and secure the order before the records can be released. This is a time-sensitive process — CPS records are subject to retention schedules and can be destroyed after the retention period expires. The motion should be filed immediately to prevent routine destruction of potentially critical evidence.
What should I do if the insurance company calls me?
Do not talk to the insurance adjuster. Do not give a recorded statement. Do not answer questions about the incident. Say: “I am not giving a statement at this time. Please contact my attorney.” Then call a lawyer. The adjuster is a professional whose job is to minimize the claim. Every word you say is being evaluated for its value to the defense. When you have a lawyer, the adjuster talks to the lawyer — not to you.
How much does it cost to hire a child wrongful death lawyer?
We work on contingency. You pay nothing out of pocket. We do not get paid unless we win your case. The fee is 33.33% before trial and 40% if the case goes to trial. We front the costs of the investigation — experts, records, court filings — and those costs are repaid from the recovery. If there is no recovery, you owe us nothing. The consultation is free. Call 1-888-ATTY-911.
Do I have to wait for the criminal case to finish before I can file a civil lawsuit?
No. The civil case can proceed independently of the criminal prosecution. There are strategic reasons to file the civil case promptly — evidence preservation, the statute of limitations, and the ability to conduct civil discovery — even while the criminal case is ongoing. In some cases, the civil case is stayed (paused) while the criminal case concludes, but the filing of the civil case protects the family’s rights and starts the evidence-preservation process. The criminal conviction, if obtained, then becomes a powerful tool in the civil case.
What if I was not at home when my child was injured?
This is not your fault. You went to work. You trusted a family member to care for your child. That is what working parents do. The person who was responsible for your child’s care is the one who has to answer for what happened — not you. The law does not penalize a parent for going to work. The law holds the caregiver accountable for what happened on their watch. If you want to learn more about how child injury cases work, our guide to child injury lawsuits is a resource we produced for parents in exactly this situation.
The Truth About What Happened on West Miles Street
The bed was 22 inches off the floor. The floor was carpeted. The child was one year old. The fracture was to the back of her skull. She died two days later.
Those facts — measured by Ector County Sheriff’s deputies, documented in the medical records at Medical Center Hospital, and confirmed by the autopsy that the Ector County Medical Examiner will produce — do not describe a fall. They describe something done to a child by the person who was supposed to protect her.
The stepfather told deputies one story. He told his own family a different story. The physical evidence contradicts both.
If you are the mother, you need to hear this one more time: you went to work. You did what every working parent does. What happened inside that house happened because of the person who was there — not because of the person who was not.
The criminal case will determine whether the stepfather goes to prison. The civil case — your case — is the one that determines whether anyone pays for what was taken from your family. The criminal prosecution will not give you a single dollar. It will not pay the medical bills. It will not compensate you for the loss of your daughter. Only the civil system does that.
The evidence that will build your case is being held right now by the Ector County Sheriff’s Office, the Medical Examiner, Medical Center Hospital, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, and possibly a homeowner’s insurance company. Every day that passes is a day that evidence gets older, colder, and closer to being lost. The CPS records are on a retention schedule. The insurance company is building its denial file. The clock is running.
Call us at 1-888-ATTY-911. The consultation is free. We work on contingency — no fee unless we win your case. We are available 24/7 with live staff. Hablamos Español. Ralph Manginello has 27+ years in Texas courtrooms. Lupe Peña sat inside the insurance industry and now fights it. We know how to build these cases because we have built them. We know what the biomechanics expert will say, what the insurance adjuster will try, and what the jury needs to hear.
Your daughter’s story is not over. It is just being told in a different courtroom now — one where the only question is what her life was worth and what your family lost. We are ready to help you answer it.