3-Year-Old Killed During Exorcism, Mother Charged: Court Records

Campbell CA

12 May, 2022

9:07 PM

Description

SAN JOSE, CA — A 3-year-old girl whose family believed she was possessed by a demon died at her mother's hands during a 12-hour exorcism, according to authorities. Claudia Hernandez, 25, of Mountain View, was charged in February with assault of a child with force likely to result in death, according to court documents, which detail the hours of suffering the girl endured before eventually succumbing to her injuries. Hernandez believed that her daughter, named in court documents as Arely Doe, was possessed, after the girl intermittently woke up, screaming or crying, the night of Sept. 23, court records said. At 6:30 a.m. the next morning, Hernandez and Arely's uncle took the girl to a church led by Arely's grandfather, according to court documents. The church was located in a residential building in the 1000 block of South 2nd Street in San Jose and was identified by The Mercury News as Iglesia Apostoles y Profetas. The Mercury News also reported that a member of the church is charged in connection with a recent high-profile San Jose kidnapping. During the exorcism, Hernandez attempted to make Arely throw up because she believed vomiting would "help her get the spirit out," court records said. The mother tried to stick her finger down the child's throat and squeezed the victim's neck, according to court documents, which noted the child suffered bruising around her eyes, throat and chest. The girl died around 6 p.m., court records said. While her mother, uncle and grandfather were all present, no one performed lifesaving measures, 911 was not alerted until roughly two hours after the death, and medical personnel found the child's body on the floor of the church, according to court documents. The preliminary cause of death was found to be homicide by asphyxia due to suffocation, court records said. In a YouTube video with a title that matches the name of the girl who died and that was posted less than a week before Hernandez was charged, a woman who appears to be Hernandez spoke about her daughter's life and death. "It's OK, because I know she's in a better place and God knows why he allows these things," she said. "It's many reasons why God took her." At times, the woman — who is filmed sitting in a vehicle — seems emotional; but at other points, she giggles and chews gum. "When she passed away, she was with me," the woman said. "At the end of the day, I know what happened, God knows what happened and the people that were there when she passed away knows what happened. … The truth always comes out. It always comes out."