Father accused of killing his 1-year-old son makes first Sacramento Superior Court appearance
A father accused of beheading his 1-year-old son last week at their family’s Foothill Farms home made his first appearance Tuesday afternoon in Sacramento Superior Court.
Andrey Demskiy, 28, appeared for his arraignment hearing inside a courtroom holding cell. He was wearing teal-colored protective gear that covered most of his body. Three deputies were inside the cell with him.
Demskiy, in moments during the brief hearing, appeared to be smiling as he stared at his attorney standing near him. Attorneys and the judge did not discuss the status of Demskiy’s mental health during Tuesday’s arraignment.
The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office has formally charged Demskiy with murder in the death of his son, Micah Gabriel Demskiy. The father also faces felony charges of assault resulting in the death of a child younger than 8 years old, corporal injury on a spouse and assault by means of force likely to cause great bodily injury.
Sacramento County sheriff’s officials have said the “gruesome” homicide occurred after a report of domestic violence at the home in a Foothill Farms residential neighborhood. Demskiy is accused of assaulting his wife and his mother-in-law during the incident.
Judge Peter Williams ordered Demskiy to remain in custody at the Sacramento County Main Jail, where he is being held without bail. The judge scheduled Demskiy to return to the courtroom March 13 for further proceedings in his murder case.
Sacramento County Deputy Public Defender Norm Dawson, Demskiy’s court-appointed attorney, told the judge the defense should have most of the prosecution’s discovery evidence in March to move forward with the case.
Deputy District Attorney Omar Singh told the judge the prosecution will hand over the discovery evidence as soon as possible.
More than a dozen of Demskiy’s family members were in the courtroom for Tuesday’s arraignment, some of them were still visibly distraught four days after the child’s death and his father’s arrest on murder and domestic violence charges. The family members declined to speak to news reporters as they left the courthouse.
‘Sweet little boy’
Lilli Vinn, Micah’s aunt, described him in a Gofundme page as a “sweet little boy” who loved everyone, especially dogs. She said she started the online fundraiser to help the boy’s family with funeral costs and his mother, who is pregnant, unemployed and needs to relocate.
“His kind heart and beautiful smile warmed the hearts of everyone he came in contact with,” Vinn said about her nephew. “He loved his family and especially his mama. He loved being with family, going to the park and singing hymns with his family.”
She wrote in the Gofundme page that the boy’s death was caused after a “devastating chain of events unraveled.”
About 4:15 a.m. Friday, deputies were called to the home in the 7500 block of Versailles Way, just south of Antelope Road, on the northern end of the Foothill Farms suburb. It was initially reported as a family disturbance, according to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies arrived and found a woman outside the home. Sheriff’s officials said the woman told deputies her husband, later identified as Demskiy, assaulted her and her mother. The woman’s mother suffered injuries that were not life-threatening and was taken by ambulance to a hospital.
The deputies tried to speak to Demskiy, but sheriff’s officials said the father refused to answer the door.
Shortly after, the deputies learned Demskiy was inside the home with his 1-year-old son. Sheriff’s officials said the deputies also learned that Demskiy had possibly injured the boy after throwing him.
The deputies, fearing for the child’s safety, forced their way into the home and tried to detain Demskiy. Sheriff’s officials said the father “was uncooperative” and became physically resistant.
As they took Demskiy into custody, sheriff’s officials said the deputies “made the gruesome discovery of a severed child’s head in the bedroom” where the boy’s father was found and detained.
Detectives from the sheriff’s Child Abuse Bureau, which typically handles murder investigations involving children, were called to the Foothill Farms home, along with crime scene investigators.
Sheriff’s officials said the detectives determined Demskiy was initially involved in a domestic violence incident with his wife and his mother-in-law before the women left the home and waited for deputies to arrive.
The detectives believe that Demskiy then “used a knife to behead and murder” his son, sheriff’s officials said.
This story was originally published December 24, 2024 at 3:01 PM.
