Khaliq Woods (Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office).
A man from Georgia was convicted of violently squeezing his daughter to death and attempting to cover up her injuries by claiming they occurred while they were playing together, stating that he was tossing her in the air and catching her.
The man, Khaliq Woods, age 29, was determined guilty of felony murder, aggravated battery, and first-degree child cruelty in relation to the tragic death of his infant daughter, Kamila Woods, in 2019 at their residence in Duluth. The announcement was made by the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office this past Tuesday.
In a press release on Tuesday, prosecutors detailed the case against Woods and disclosed that he received a sentence of life in prison with the chance of parole.
Jurors deliberated for 10 hours before finding him guilty.
“We grieve with the family of the deceased child Kamila Woods,” Gwinnett District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in a statement. “This is a tragedy that an infant’s life was taken,” the DA added.
According to prosecutors, Woods, who was 23 years old at the time brought Kamila to Northside Duluth Medical Center himself on the morning of Nov. 30, 2019. Kamila was pronounced dead upon arrival.
“Kamila’s mother had dropped her off at Woods’ apartment the previous day,” the DA’s office explained Tuesday. “Woods told police that he had been playing with the infant that evening, tossing her in the air and catching her. He said on one of those catches, he felt the infant’s side go in, and he heard wheezing. He put her to bed around 10 p.m., that evening, and went back to check on her around 2 a.m.”
More from Law&Crime: ‘I had orders’: Man killed dad after fight over doing ‘dishes,’ told 911 he put his father ‘out of his misery,’ police say
Woods told police that Kamila had not moved from her position, and that she was also refusing to take a bottle or pacifier. He claimed he checked on her again at around 6 a.m. before ordering a ride-share to take her to the hospital.
“A search warrant of Woods’ phone revealed that around 2 am, he searched for ‘symptoms of broken ribs in children’ on the internet no less than 9 times,” according to the DA’s office.
“The autopsy conducted on Kamila showed that she had suffered multiple rib fractures, a lacerated liver, and bleeding and swelling of the brain,” prosecutors said. “Evidence introduced at trial showed that Kamila’s injuries were consistent with being violently squeezed and shaken.”
DA Austin-Gatson added, “We pray that the outcome of this trial will help Kamila’s family heal.”
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
