Healdsburg father charged in daughter's church drowning yells out 'Why did I do it?' in court

A Healdsburg man charged with drowning his 4-year-old daughter in a church baptismal pool screamed, “Why did I do it?” as he was wheeled Monday from a Santa Rosa courtroom.

Gerardo Mendoza Ordaz, 42, is charged in the Nov. 20 slaying of Maria Jose Ordaz Chavarria at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Healdsburg.

Police believe Ordaz held the girl under a few feet of water as her 9-year-old brother watched. He was arrested the same day after carrying her lifeless body to the nearby police station.

Prosecutors have not released a motive. In open court Monday, Judge Julie Conger said a psychologist has examined Ordaz and concluded he is not mentally competent to stand trial. She suspended criminal proceedings until a second doctor could evaluate his mental fitness.

Ordaz, bound to a wheelchair for security reasons, listened quietly with more than a dozen family members looking on. As he was wheeled afterward through an open doorway to the jail, the distraught man yelled in Spanish and could be heard throughout the courtroom.

“He said, ‘Why did I do it? Why did I kill my daughter?'” said extended family member Carlos Ordaz, a teenager attending the hearing with his father, a cousin of the defendant.

Carlos Ordaz said in a brief interview that the family believes Ordaz was on drugs at the time of the slaying. He said the girl, one of Ordaz's four children, was her father's favorite.

“He loved her the most,” said Carlos Ordaz.

Neither prosecutors nor Ordaz's lawyer could be reached Monday for comment.

Dr. Laura Doty, a Santa Rosa psychologist, was ordered to conduct Ordaz's second mental health examination. She will report back at a Dec. 19 hearing.

If Ordaz is deemed unfit, he could be sent to Napa State Hospital for treatment that could restore his competency. That process could take months or years.

If he is competent, he will enter a plea and face a possible trial. He was charged last week with first-degree murder and two counts of child abuse.

Ordaz, a day laborer, moved with his family to Healdsburg about six months ago. The family previously lived in Sacramento.

The night of the slaying, he walked naked from the church across the street to the downtown police station's rear parking lot with his son, carrying the little girl and yelling for help. His 8:30 p.m. arrival launched an extensive but unsuccessful effort by first responders to save the girl.

Healdsburg police Lt. Matt Jenkins on Monday said the death investigation would include determining whether exorcism played a role.

An exorcism is considered a religious or spiritual event to drive out an evil spirit or demon from someone or something believed to be possessed.

“It's obviously something that would be looked into,” Jenkins said, as part of a comprehensive investigation of a slaying inside a church. “It's not something that has been excluded.”

But motive, why Ordaz removed his clothes or what led to the drowning were details that would be left for court, the lieutenant said.

Results of blood tests showing whether the man was under the influence of drugs or alcohol haven't yet returned, Jenkins said.

Police officials last week had sought public help in piecing together what happened in the hours leading up to the church death. They asked anyone who had seen the father and two children walking in town that evening to contact officers.

Investigators believe the three set out on foot about 5:45 p.m. from their home at the north end of town and then walked about 1½ miles to downtown. Along the way they made at least three stops – one involving the purchase of a lemonade or vitamin water type of drink.

“We have them in two gas station convenience stores in town and one business downtown,” Jenkins said, along with the church.

Ordaz has a criminal record and has been deported to Mexico four times over the last 20 years.

Details about why he was deported were not released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. But the actions could have been prompted by his criminal convictions in four Northern California counties.

He served a two-year prison term after a 1998 felony burglary conviction in Sonoma County. His name at the time was Jorge Mendoza Flores, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. He was paroled in January 1999.

Ordaz was twice convicted of misdemeanor drunken driving, once in 2004 in Placer County and in 2005 in Tehama County. He also had a misdemeanor petty theft conviction in Sacramento County in 2007.

Staff writers Julie Johnson and Randi Rossmann contributed to this report.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 707-568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.