Appalling reason child murderer who beat adorable two year-old girl to death was freed from prison after less than 13 years

A child killer who strangled a two-year-old girl has been released on probation two years earlier than expected after officials said he had “his triggers” under control.

David Leonardo was found guilty of the murder of Priscilla Rose Hernandez in Castroville, California, in December 2011.

Monterey County officers and firefighters said that at the time of the horrific crime, they saw Leonardo, the boyfriend of the victim’s mother, holding the badly bruised and unconscious Hernandez in his arms.

Officials noted that although she had a patent airway, the infant appeared pale and was motionless. Her extremities were also cool to the touch.

An autopsy report later revealed that Hernandez suffered blunt force trauma to her abdomen, which caused tears in the lining of her abdomen and in her colon — causing internal bleeding. She died within minutes.

Facial injuries indicated she had been strangled sometime in the 24 hours prior to her death.

The child was also found with bruises on her chest, abdomen, head, legs and arms.

Ultimately, during an interrogation, Leonardo told authorities that he had become angry and punched Hernandez in the stomach.

An autopsy report later revealed that Hernandez suffered blunt force trauma to her abdomen, causing tears in the lining of her abdomen and in her colon

He claimed that the child had thrown a tantrum because her mother had left and that he had put her in time-out because of it.

But when she urinated and defecated in her pants ‘in protest’, he angrily punched her in the stomach.

In February 2014, Judge Larry E. Hayes sentenced the killer to 15 years in prison.

The brutal child killer was initially granted parole in October 2022, but California Governor Gavin Newsom reversed that decision in March 2023.

Eventually, during an interview, Leonardo told authorities that he became angry and punched Hernandez in the stomach

Facial injuries indicated she had been strangled within twenty-four hours of her death

But on April 23, the California Board of Parole Hearings again granted Leonardo parole, despite protests from the toddler’s parents and grandmothers.

“A Board of Parole panel stated that their award was based on the work the inmate had done while incarcerated to transform and rehabilitate himself,” the district attorney’s office said. said.

According to KSBWAccording to the board, he had sufficiently reduced the risk of domestic violence, had gained more insight into the triggers that prompted him to engage in his behavior and had developed coping skills to maintain healthy relationships.

Based on the new decision, he will likely be released after serving less than 13 years in prison.