The following press released was issued by the Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office:
At the conclusion of a two-day bench trial, defendant Audrey Joyce Hernandez, age 76, of Ukiah, was found guilty of two counts of willfully and unlawfully inflicting an injury resulting in a traumatic condition on a 10-year-old child occurring on two separate days, both counts at the felony level.
Defendant Hernandez was also found guilty of three additional counts of unlawful child endangerment, one misdemeanor count for each of three additional children.
Also known as a court trial, a bench trial occurs after both the defendant and the prosecution waive their respective rights to have the question of guilt on criminal charges decided by a jury.
The defendant’s case has now been referred to the Mendocino County Adult Probation Department for a social study and sentencing recommendation.
A formal sentencing hearing has also been calendared for November 4, 2020 at 1:30 in the afternoon in Department A of the Ukiah courthouse.
Any person interested in the outcome of this case is welcome to attend the hearing on November 4th. Facial coverings and social distancing will be strictly enforced for those in attendance.
The law enforcement agencies that investigated the defendant and gathered the evidence supporting today’s convictions are the Ukiah Police Department and the investigators working for the District Attorney.
Special thanks are extended to the school counselor who sounded the alarm, the emergency room staff that treated the minor, and the minor’s current foster mother.
The prosecutor who is handling this case is Assistant District Attorney Dale P. Trigg.
Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Ann Moorman heard the evidence, entered the guilty verdicts, and will preside over the November 4th sentencing hearing.
