Man gets prison for injury to child

COEUR d’ALENE — A man who sexually abused a teen girl will spend time in an Idaho prison before facing deportation. 

Camilo Martinez-Gonzalez, 34, of Post Falls, pleaded guilty in April to injury to a child, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. In Idaho, injury to a child occurs when a person willfully causes or permits a child to be placed in a position that causes or is likely to cause great bodily injury, suffering or death.

Prosecutors first charged Martinez-Gonzalez with lewd conduct with a minor under the age of 16, punishable by up to life in prison, but later dismissed the charges in exchange for his guilty plea. In court Monday, prosecuting attorney Sam Stevens indicated the “DNA testing timeline” impacted the plea deal. 

First District Judge John Mitchell sentenced Martinez-Gonzalez on Monday to seven years in prison. 

“These are shocking facts,” Mitchell said. 

The charges stem from January, when police responded to a report that Martinez-Gonzalez had a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl. 

The girl told police Martinez-Gonzalez had sexual contact with her on multiple occasions. 

Prosecutors asked the court to impose the maximum possible sentence. 

“Ten years is not a short period of time, but it would be very reasonable to assume the minor will be affected much longer than that,” Stevens said. 

When deciding the sentence, Mitchell said he considered the fact that Martinez-Gonzalez will face deportation proceedings immediately after completing his prison sentence in Idaho. 

“It troubles me that it’s going to cost the state of Idaho’s taxpayers over $500,000 to house you over the next seven years,” Mitchell said, adding that he believes a shorter sentence would diminish the gravity of the crime. 

Mitchell said he imposed the seven-year sentence because he believes it is the minimum amount of time that appropriately punishes Martinez-Gonzalez for the “despicable crime” he committed and deters others from similar crimes. 

In court Monday, Martinez-Gonzalez apologized for his actions. 

“I just want to say I accept everything I did, and I know it was wrong,” he said before receiving the sentence. “Whatever I’m able to do for my family, it won’t repair the damage I did.” 

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or sexual abuse, call Safe Passage Violence Prevention Center’s 24-hour helpline: 208-664-9303.