Mother says Fort Bliss failed to take 3-year-old’s domestic violence case seriously

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) – The mother of a 3-year-old, whose father punched in the head and chest, says Fort Bliss officials failed to take abuse allegations seriously.

Specialist Baltazar E. Gonzalez, 27, will serve six years in a military correction facility and was dishonorably discharged from the Army after pleading guilty to several charges, including domestic violence after the assault in 2025, according to military officials.

“This positive result is the product of over a year of effective collaboration between military and civilian law enforcement agencies and military and civilian prosecution teams,” said Maj. Joshua Storm, prosecutor, Fifth Circuit, Army OSTC. “Although no court-martial sentence can undo the harm of domestic violence, the sentence imposed is an important step in securing justice for Spc. Gonzalez’s child.”

Eliana Gonzalez, the child's mother, says she doesn't think six years is enough.

"After seeing the video and knowing that, I mean, I think even the charges weren't good enough. It just shows domestic violence. I feel like, and I've expressed to them, it should have been as far as other charges because he did strangle him. And all of the hits were lethal. So I feel like they they went really easy on him with the charges and the time," Gonzalez says.

Gonzalez says the child's father got less time because his leadership at Fort Bliss had his back.

"I feel like because he's in the Army, the judge didn't even show really remorse when he was going over the charges with him. The father definitely didn't show remorse. It was more because, again, he's just in the army. They all pretty much have each other's back," the child's mother says.

She says domestic violence is something that's very common in the military and it's something they sweep under the rug.

Gonzalez says the child's father had a history of alcohol and drug abuse that wasn't taken seriously by his leadership before the sentencing.

"They didn't notify me that he failed to drug test just a month before. I feel like they just turned the other way. They don't pay attention to it," Gonzalez says.

Spc. Gonzalez had a charge of wrongful use of cocaine which was detected during a unit urinalysis on Jan. 7, 2025, according to military officials.

ABC-7 reached out to officials at Ft. Bliss for an interview and statistics on domestic violence cases at Ft. Bliss.