Judge sentences Hanford woman to prison for death of 2-year-old niece

HANFORD, Calif. (KFSN) -- A judge sentenced a South Valley woman to state prison Sunday after she recently pled "no contest" to murdering her two-year-old niece.

It's been almost three years since 2-year-old Yeily Guadalupe died while in the care of her aunt, Rosa Ramirez.

"One version was that the child fell in the bathtub," explained Phil Esbenshade with the Kings County District Attorney's Office. "That was inconsistent with what detectives and investigators uncovered."

Last month, Ramirez, who has a few children of her own, plead "no contest" to second-degree murder in the case. On Monday, Ramirez's attorney told the judge that her client was very sorry for the loss of the child who was in her care.

Judge Thomas DeSantos then announced the stipulated sentence for Ramirez - 15 years to life in prison.

"This was not a win-win situation," he said. "We would have much rather had this not occur, but, today, though, at least we can bring some justice to the families and the community that this lady won't harm any other children."

Investigators arrested Ramirez in the spring of 2014 for beating the two-year-old to death, possibly because of potty-training issues with the child.

They said she had bruising on her face, blunt force trauma to her stomach, as well as three massive skull fractures.

When the case first came about, Yeily's mother told Action News she gave her brother and his wife, Ramirez, guardianship of the girl while she received treatment for cancer. She has since died.

Meanwhile, Ramirez is headed to the California state prison for women. She will be placed on parole when she's eventually released.