Prosecutors say 2-year-old Jaxon Juarez was repeatedly assaulted after being placed with relatives.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — An 18-year-old San Jose man has been charged in juvenile court with murdering his 2-year-old foster brother, Jaxon Juarez, after prosecutors said the toddler was found bruised, battered and with a hair tie around his neck.

The case has drawn sharp questions about how Jaxon was placed in the home weeks before his death. Santa Clara County prosecutors say the accused teen was a minor when the child was found April 5, and they are asking a judge to move the case to adult court. County officials also face separate reviews into the placement decision and the conduct of child welfare workers.

District Attorney Jeff Rosen announced the murder charge April 20, saying Jaxon, known to relatives as “Baby Jaxon,” had suffered repeated physical and sexual abuse after he entered the foster family home in February. San Jose police found the child in a crib on Easter Sunday. Rosen said at a news conference that a ponytail holder was found around the toddler’s neck, leading to a felony assault charge involving a hair tie. “We are left with broken hearts and serious questions about who was watching out for the safety of these extremely vulnerable children,” Rosen said. Jaxon was hospitalized and placed on life support after police responded to the home. He died April 9. A full autopsy remained pending when prosecutors announced the charges.

The suspect’s name has not been released because he is charged in juvenile court and was 17 at the time of the alleged killing. Prosecutors said he is Jaxon’s cousin as well as his foster brother. The district attorney’s office said the new case includes murder, child assault causing death and assault with a hair tie, along with several felony counts tied to sexual assault. Some sexual assault counts had already been filed before the homicide charge was added. Rosen called the case “terrible and horrific” and said evidence showed Jaxon had been abused many times after he was placed in the home. Officials have not released a detailed timeline of each alleged assault, the full medical findings or the records used to approve the placement. Those details remain limited because of the defendant’s age and the sealed nature of juvenile proceedings.

Jaxon had been in the care of Bridget Michelle Martinez, the teen suspect’s mother, after Santa Clara County placed him with her in late February, according to relatives and local reports. Martinez was related to Jaxon’s father, Albert Juarez. Jaxon’s aunt, Riley Wallace, said his mother, Brianna Burton, died in 2025 and the county later took custody of the boy. Wallace said Jaxon first lived with another foster family, then with his maternal grandfather near Sacramento for about six months. The grandfather could not continue caring for him because the county required regular visits near the South Bay, Wallace said. Jaxon was then moved to Martinez’s home. Wallace said relatives in Arizona asked to take him but were told the distance from his father was a barrier. “We have the room,” Wallace said. “With this case, nothing made sense.”

The placement has become a central issue because Martinez had a 2014 felony child endangerment conviction tied to a drunken driving case. Police and court records described by local news outlets said officers found Martinez stopped in a traffic lane in Santa Clara with her 1-year-old daughter in the car. Records said she had signs of intoxication and was later charged with felony child endangerment and misdemeanor DUI. She pleaded no contest and was sentenced to probation. Records also showed a prior DUI conviction from 2011 and another DUI charge in 2020. A county policy cited in local reporting says a felony child endangerment conviction bars a placement, including in an emergency. County officials have not publicly explained how Jaxon came to be placed in Martinez’s home despite that record.

The county said both law enforcement and the Department of Family and Children’s Services are investigating Jaxon’s case. Officials also asked the California Department of Social Services to conduct an independent review. In a statement, the county called the case “deeply concerning” and said it would share findings when allowed by law. The case has revived scrutiny of the local child welfare system, which already was under state oversight after the 2023 deaths of two other young children connected to county supervision. Rosen linked Jaxon’s name to Baby Phoenix, a 3-month-old who died after ingesting fentanyl and methamphetamine, and said the system must answer how children under public protection can die after warning signs are present.

Child welfare expert Steve Baron, a member of Santa Clara County’s Child Abuse Prevention Council, said the placement review should focus on records, judgment and safety checks. “Were they aware of those records? And if not, why not? Because they should have been,” Baron said. He said the first question in any placement should be whether the child will be safe and whether the adults in the home can meet the child’s needs. County officials have not said whether workers knew about Martinez’s felony conviction before Jaxon was moved. They also have not said whether background checks, home reviews or supervisory approvals failed, or whether the placement was made under a policy exception.

The juvenile court path now controls the criminal case. If the petition is found true in juvenile court, the district attorney’s office said the suspect could face seven years in Secure Track, a locked facility for juveniles found responsible for serious crimes. If a judge transfers the case to adult court, the suspect could face many years in prison. No public adult criminal complaint had been filed against him when prosecutors announced the juvenile case, and his identity remained shielded. Martinez was arrested during the broader investigation, according to local reporting, but she was no longer in custody as of the first public accounts. Any charges against her, if filed, would be separate from the murder case against her son.

Relatives have described Jaxon as a bright child whose final months were shaped by moves between caretakers and official decisions he could not control. Wallace said her family wanted to give him a home and still does not understand why that did not happen. Rosen said Jaxon “will never have any way to tell his own story,” and said his office would speak for him in court. The county’s promised review may determine how the boy entered the home, what records were checked and whether warnings were missed before police found him April 5.

As of May 10, the teen remained charged in juvenile court while prosecutors sought adult court review. County and state investigations into Jaxon’s placement and death were still pending, with public findings expected only when allowed by law.

Author note: Last updated May 10, 2026.