Fresno man sentenced for shooting 10-month-old baby

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Fresno man sat emotionless in court today as he found out he will spend the rest of his life in prison for the attempted murder of a baby.

Marcos Echartea was just 23 when he tried flirting with the mom of a 10-month-old baby at a house party in 2019. When the mom, her baby, and a friend left, Echartea opened fire on their car.

"It is egregious and unconscionable to shoot into a moving vehicle with three occupants," Deputy District Attorney Jenny Volanti said.

Dramatic video from that day -- played in court earlier this year -- shows the chaotic scene. You can see a flash when Echartea pulled the trigger.

That is when a bullet hit baby Fayth Percy in the back of the head. The 10-month-old was injured but survived.

Earlier this summer, the court found Echartea guilty of attempted murder, assault, and having a gun while under a restraining order. Today, Volanti said it is the worst crime she has seen in her career and urged the court to hand down the maximum sentence.

"I believe the defendant should be sentenced to every single day that he's allowed to receive under the law. And it probably is still not enough," Volanti said.

Echartea's attorney, Jane Boulger, said a long sentence is "cruel" because all the victims survived. She urged the court to be fair.

"In general, a sentence of this length for a non-homicide can be considered cruel and unusual," Boulger said.

Boulger's effort was not enough to convince Judge Jonathan Conklin to hand down a reduced sentence.

With the baby's emotional mother watching, he explained that Echartea is ordered to serve life plus 45 years in prison.

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