Chapter 5 - Justice Delivered
The jury deliberated for less than ninety minutes.
When the twelve members of the jury returned to the courtroom, the atmosphere was thick with intense anticipation.
"Will the defendants please stand," Judge Gomez ordered.
Rodrigo, Teresa, and Claudia stood up, shaking uncontrollably, held upright by federal bailiffs.
"On the count of Attempted Premeditated Murder of a Minor," the jury foreman read, his voice ringing like a bell, "we find the defendant Teresa Salcedo... GUILTY."
Teresa collapsed into her chair with a sharp, strangled shriek.
"On the count of Attempted Premeditated Murder as an Accessory," the foreman continued, "we find the defendant Rodrigo Salcedo... GUILTY."
"On the count of Felony Obstruction of Justice and Conspiracy," the foreman concluded, "we find the defendant Claudia Salcedo... GUILTY."
Cheering erupted from the public gallery. Judge Gomez slammed his gavel down hard three times to restore order.
"Silence in the court!" Judge Gomez commanded. He then turned his stern gaze down upon the convicted family.
"Rodrigo, Teresa, and Claudia Salcedo," Judge Gomez said, his voice cold and uncompromising. "The actions you committed on the night of October 12th represent the absolute nadir of human cruelty. To throw an innocent child into the ocean—your own blood—out of arrogance, pride, and greed is a crime that repulses the conscience of this nation."
The judge picked up his final sentencing document.
"Teresa Salcedo, I sentence you to thirty years at the Santa Martha Acatitla Women's Penitentiary, without the possibility of parole."
"Rodrigo Salcedo, I sentence you to twenty-eight years at the Altiplano Federal Maximum Security Prison."
"Claudia Salcedo, I sentence you to twelve years at the Federal Correctional Facility for your active role in setting the trap and concealing the crime."
Furthermore, Judge Gomez ordered the complete seizure of the Salcedo family’s liquid assets and real estate holdings under federal victim compensation laws. Seventy percent of the multi-million-dollar estate was awarded directly to Mariana and Nico Salcedo as restitution for physical, emotional, and psychological damages.
As the bailiffs stepped forward to drag the weeping, screaming defendants toward the side holding cells, Rodrigo Salcedo turned his head toward Mariana.
"Mariana!" Rodrigo cried out, tears streaming down his withered, gray face. "Mariana, please! I'm your father! Forgive us! Tell them to reduce the sentence!"
Mariana stood tall beside her lawyer. She looked at her father—the man who had held her wrist while her son struggled in the dark water—and spoke with absolute, unwavering clarity:
May you like
"You told me that night that one less child wouldn't sink this family, Rodrigo," Mariana said softly. "You were wrong. That child was the anchor you broke... and now the sea has taken you."
Rodrigo was dragged through the door, his pathetic pleas fading into the cold concrete hallway.
