A Hidalgo County jury found Miguel Angel Ortiz Jr., 38, of Pharr, guilty on Tuesday, June 9. The charge: injury to a child by omission. He let his 2-month-old son die and said nothing for days.

📍 WHAT HAPPENED

The baby died in June 2025. Ortiz did not call 911. He did not take the baby to a hospital. He waited. Three days passed. Then a group of friends called police after Ortiz told them the baby had been dead for three days.

Officers with the Pharr Police Department went to the house on a wellness check. When they arrived, the baby's mother, Karina Aidee Ramirez, 35, walked out the front door holding the infant wrapped in blankets. The baby was already gone.

Police secured the scene. A medical examiner performed an autopsy. The baby had bruises on his skull, chest, and backside. The doctor also noted the small body had already started to break down. The infant had been dead for days.

The jury found Ortiz guilty of injury to a child by omission. That means he knew his child was in danger and did nothing. That failure is a felony that can mean 2 to 20 years in prison.

The jury recommended 30 years. A judge will make the final call at a sentencing hearing pushed back to next week. Ortiz remains locked up at the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center.

🔍 WHAT WE DON'T KNOW YET

The jury did not convict Ortiz on all counts. He was found not guilty of capital murder of a child under 10, murder, injury to a child, and aggravated assault of a family member. Those charges carry much heavier penalties.

A tampering with evidence charge was later dropped by prosecutors. A marijuana possession charge also remains on record.

📋 WHAT MAKES THIS CASE HARDER

When the baby died, Ortiz and Ramirez already had an open case with Child Protective Services. The state was already watching this family. A CPS case was pending. And still, no one reached the baby in time.

Ramirez faces much more serious charges. She is accused of capital murder of a child under 10, injury to a child, and endangering a child. Capital murder of a child under 10 can carry the death penalty or life in prison without parole. Her trial starts Monday, June 15. She has been held at the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center since June 23, 2025. Her bond is $350,000. She has not paid it.

On June 9, 2026, a jury told Miguel Angel Ortiz Jr. that silence has a price.

If you know a child who may be in danger, call the ChildHelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453. They answer any time, day or night.

El Tejano will update this story as more information becomes available.