A dad from Odessa has pleaded guilty to a manslaughter charge after reportedly using a trampoline as part of a bizarre punishment.
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According to a
statement on Facebook from the Ector County District Attorney's Office, Daniel Schwarz, 48, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter. His plea is in connection to the death of his adopted daughter on August 19, 2020. Per the statement, police responded to a medical emergency at Schwarz's home in Texas involving an 8-year-old girl.Investigators discovered Daniel and his wife, Ashley, forced their daughter to jump on the trampoline as a form of punishment. She had to jump for an extended period without food. It was a hot day when officers arrived, and they noted the trampoline's surface temperature was roughly 110 degrees at the time. Per a report by People from 2020, police declared the couple's daughter, Jaylin, "deceased on scene."
The investigation allegedly revealed that Jaylin was not allowed to eat breakfast and had to jump on the trampoline "without stopping for an extended period of time." She was also denied water, which was a significant contributing factor to her death in the scorching heat. While the trampoline's surface was reportedly 110 degrees, the ground was even hotter, at 150. An autopsy ruled Jaylin's cause of death as dehydration and the manner of her death as homicide.
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People also explains that Daniel and Ashley Schwarz were not Jaylin's biological parents. Jaylin's biological mother, Alysha Anderton, was reportedly trying to get access to her and her sister before she died. The sister was also under the couple's care at the time. Anderton described Jaylin as "full of life" with a love of horseback riding, and ice skating.
Even with the guilty plea, Daniel Schwarz faces 18 years in prison for manslaughter, according to the Ector County District Attorney. Many comments responding to the statement say the sentence isn't severe enough. Authorities convicted Ashley of capital murder on May 1, 2023. The sentence carries life in prison without parole.
The press release concludes, "This outcome is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our prosecutors and the Odessa Police Department in seeking justice."
