January trial set for Rogers man in death of boy, 2

BENTONVILLE — A January jury trial is scheduled for a Rogers man accused of killing a 2-year-old boy.

Gustavo Enrique Peraza, 31, is charged with capital murder and battery. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

He faces the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole if convicted of the murder charge. The battery charge is punishable with a prison sentence ranging from 10 to 40 years or life in prison.

Peraza is accused of killing 2-year-old Ryland McDonald in 2021. He’s being held in the Benton County Jail with no bond set.

Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren on Friday scheduled jury selection in Peraza’s case to begin Jan. 29. A pretrial hearing is set for Jan. 26.

The trial is expected to last at least two weeks.

Karren presided over a motions hearing Friday. Many of the defense motions are filed in capital murder cases.

Karren denied each of the motions asking to prohibit prosecutors from seeking the death penalty.

Karren, in denying a motion seeking to declare the death penalty unconstitutional, said the Arkansas Supreme Court has ruled lethal injection isn’t a cruel or unusual punishment.

Peraza was the boyfriend of Breyana Sawyer, Ryland’s mother, according to court documents. He babysat the boy while Sawyer worked, according to court documents.

Ryland died Aug. 24, 2021. Police started investigating after being notified of the death by Mercy Hospital. Trauma to the stomach injured the boy’s intestines, which led to a serious infection that caused his death, according to a probable cause affidavit.

A doctor told police the type of injury Ryland suffered is typically caused by a punch or kick to a child’s abdomen and is typically inflicted within a week of death, the affidavit states.

Sawyer, 24, is charged with permitting abuse of a child. She pleaded not guilty to the charge. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 26.

Peraza