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DC man sentenced to life in prison and more for murder of his girlfriend's toddler
MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (DC News Now) — A Montgomery County judge sentenced a D.C. man to life in prison with an additional 60 years for murdering his girlfriend's child.
In a news release, the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office (SAO) said that 30-year-old Marlon Melendez was convicted in February 2025.
Melendez was charged with first-degree child abuse resulting in death, second-degree murder, first-degree child abuse, and second-degree child abuse in 2023.
Officials say that Melendez was responsible for the death of his girlfriend's son, a 16-month-old toddler named Zavier Giron.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: DC man charged in murder of girlfriend's 16-month-old son in Maryland
In March of 2023, Zavier's mother found that he was not breathing and called 911. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, and an autopsy later revealed evidence of child abuse.
The Montgomery County Police Department conducted an investigation and found that Melendez had been abusing Zavier. Zavier had previous injuries, including a fractured femur.
There was additionally surveillance video from a restaurant two days before Zavier's death showing Melendez pulling Zavier's hair and scratching and digging into his temple. He also squeezed lemon juice onto his finger and rubbed his finger into Zavier's eye. This happened when Zavier's mother had briefly left the table.
'This is an outrageously sad case involving the loss of a one-year-old baby. We express our deepest condolences to the victim's family. We are thankful to Montgomery County Police for their thorough investigation and to our prosecution team for their pursuit of justice on behalf of this innocent child,' said State's Attorney John McCarthy.
The sentence was only five years shorter than the longest possible sentence for his charges.
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