San Marcos man found guilty for capital murder of infant son

A San Marcos man was sentenced to life without parole for the capital murder of his infant son. 

Stevie Dwayne Williams Jr., 27, was found guilty Thursday for killing his 20-month-old son Mason Williams in 2018. 

“Child abuse is always tragic, but never more so than when a child dies at the hands of his own parent,” District Attorney Wes Mau said. 

The trial, which began on Oct. 12, showed evidence that Williams and his wife — Dazrine Chagoya — called 911 on July 4, 2018 with claims that their son was discovered not breathing after a nap. Kyle Fire Department and EMS tried to perform life-saving measures on Mason. Evidence, however, showed that KFD and EMS noticed bruising and evidence that Mason’s death had occurred hours earlier. Additionally, investigators later learned that Williams had called his grandmother and told her the baby was dead at least 12 minutes before calling 911. 

Mau’s office said the medical examiner and a Dell Children’s Hospital pediatrics expert testified during the trial that Mason’s death was the result of squeezing the child’s body, depriving his brain of oxygen.

Williams' other child, an 8-month-old baby girl, was removed from their care by Child Protective Services the day after Mason’s death, Mau’s office said. 

Dell Children’s Hospital physicians found several serious injuries on the surviving child, including those that were similar to the ones discovered on Mason. Williams told detectives in a statement on July 7, 2018 that he and his wife knew what happened to their children. Williams claimed that Mason was taken by a “demon or pure evil,” he said in the statement. Williams gave several statements containing multiple inconsistencies and denied knowledge of his children’s injuries. But information taken from Williams and his wife’s phones show injuries to both children over several months. 

During the trial, CPS caseworkers testified that they observed similar injuries on Mason in 2017. He was returned to Williams and his wife in March 2018 but only after the couple completed required services. 

After Williams was found guilty, Judge Bill Henry — 428th Judicial District Court — sentenced Williams to life in prison without parole because the state did not seek the death penalty, Mau’s office said. 

Following the trial, Mau complimented lead prosecutor Assistant Criminal District Attorney Jamie Liu, assisted at trial by ACDA Jennifer Feldman, along with Kyle Police Department Detectives Joseph Swonke, Pedro Carrasco and Diane Talamantes for their work during the case.