On August 1, 2024, David Castro, 45, was found guilty by a jury for Continuous Sexual Abuse of a Child under the age of 14. The defendant requested that the sentence be administered by the jury, which sentenced him to 33 years in prison. This long-running case began with Castro's indictment in March 2021 when a Grand Jury indicted him. The sexual abuse occurred in Galveston County and Dallas County.
Previous Convictions in Galveston County:
- May 22, 1997: Convicted of Resisting Arrest.
- March 26, 1998: Convicted of Terroristic Threat against a woman and received 20 days in jail.
- February 6, 1997: Convicted of Assault against a woman and received 12 months probation.
- June 26, 2007: Convicted of Assault - Family Violence and received 60 days in jail.
- 2000: Convicted of Assault Family Violence and received 30 days in jail.
- February 2004: Convicted in the 212th District Court of Galveston County for Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon and sentenced to 2 years in prison.
- September 26, 2011: Convicted of DWI with a child under 15 in the vehicle and received 6 months in jail.
Convictions in Dallas County:
- July 6, 2017: Convicted of Injury to a Child and sentenced to 255 days in jail. Castro beat the child with a shoe for coming home from school late, leaving bruises all over her arms and body. The school reported the incident to the police.
Current Case Details: In the case that culminated on August 1, 2024, evidence showed that Castro was verbally abusive to his girlfriend's daughter. He would put her in "time out," even though neither of her siblings would be put in time out. During time out, the child had to kneel in a corner for extended periods. In one incident, Castro made the child kneel on hard, dry beans in the corner for an hour, causing extreme pain to her knees. Additionally, the child was only allowed to eat Ramen noodles for days after her time out. During this time, the sexual abuse of the child began and continued from age 4 to 11.
The victim made reports of the abuse in Galveston, Addison, Dallas and Garland. According to the testimony, they moved around often. At times, the girl's mother lived in Galveston while the young child stayed with an aunt in the DFW area. The details of the abuse is harrowing.
The Garland Police Department, Addison Police Department, Irving Police Department, Galveston Police Department, Dallas Sheriff's Office and Dallas Police Department were involved in the investgation. The Dallas Children's Advocacy Center and Child Protective Services were an integral part of the case.
The case was prosecuted by Amanda Boylan and Brenna Buchanan of the Dallas County Criminal District Attorney's Office. The DA Investigator was Barry Maxwell and the DA Victim Advocate was Leslie Gutierrez.
