A Downey father accused of fatally injuring his 8-month-old son in 2019 handed his fate to a jury this week after representing himself at trial, at times appearing before jurors in a military uniform. Milton Alexis Paniagua, 46, is charged with murder and assault on a child causing death in the killing of his son, Maximilian, who prosecutors say died after being violently shaken and slammed onto a hardwood floor.
According to The Downey Patriot, the alleged attack happened at the family's Downey home on September 26, 2019. Maximilian was rushed to a hospital and died on October 1, 2019. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office concluded he died from blunt force head trauma, and the outlet reports he sustained five skull fractures, retinal hemorrhages too numerous to count, and bruising to his forehead, back, left arm and right flank.
Paniagua was arrested by Downey police on February 21, 2020, and has remained behind bars since, meaning he spent over six and a half years in pre-trial detention before the case reached a jury this week.
Prosecutor Points to Teething and a Lost Temper
Deputy District Attorney Jonathan Hatami, who tried the case, told jurors that Paniagua got frustrated, lost his temper, and violently shook and slammed his baby onto the floor. Per the same account, Hatami said the infant's injuries were not caused by a fall or an accident, and argued that Maximilian likely cried for help because his teeth hurt in the moments before the fatal violence.
Hatami urged jurors to hold Paniagua accountable and find him guilty of second-degree murder and assault, telling them Paniagua lied, refused to take responsibility, and blamed others for years, the outlet reported. Hatami was appointed in January 2025 as Assistant Head Deputy of the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office's Complex Child Abuse Unit, according to KHTS Radio, and has been connected to the Gabriel Fernandez case and documentary.
A Marine Veteran Defends Himself in Uniform
Rather than rely on an attorney, Paniagua chose to represent himself at trial, appearing before the jury in a military uniform. In his closing argument, he told jurors that things are not what they seem and that he is a good father who has taken care of his three sons, adding that he had a vested interest in figuring out what happened to his child, the Patriot reported.
Paniagua argued that if he had thrown his son onto the floor as alleged, the boy would have shown corresponding injuries to his neck and hips — a medical counterpoint he offered to try to raise reasonable doubt against the prosecution's forensic evidence. He told the jury he had raised reasonable doubt about the case against him and said he would respect the verdict whether he is found guilty or not guilty.
Prosecutor Warns Jury Not to Be Swayed by the Uniform
Addressing Paniagua's courtroom attire directly, Hatami cautioned jurors that a military uniform does not define the person wearing it, telling them what matters is what's inside the uniform. Paniagua served in the U.S. Marine Corps before his 2020 arrest.
The jury received the case Tuesday and deliberated for just under an hour before breaking, with jurors due back in court Wednesday morning to continue deciding Paniagua's fate. The trial was held at the Norwalk Courthouse, the Los Angeles County Superior Court facility that handles major felony prosecutions from Downey and neighboring communities in the Southeast Judicial District.
If convicted, Paniagua could face sentencing under California Penal Code Section 273ab, which mandates 25 years to life in state prison for an assault on a child under eight that results in death, according to the Hedding Law Firm. The statute applies to a person with care or custody of a child under eight who assaults the child with force likely to produce great bodily injury and the assault results in death.
Countywide, child fatalities from alleged abuse are tracked through a 24-hour Child Protection Hotline, and a fatality is confirmed if DCFS, law enforcement, or the Coroner makes that determination, per the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services. State confidentiality laws limit what individual child welfare records can be disclosed even as aggregate data is tracked across the county.
