Man sexually abused girlfriend’s 2-year-old, beat toddler to death, FL cops say

A man accused of fatally injuring his girlfriend’s 2-year-old daughter while the mom was at work has now been sentenced to life in prison, according to Florida prosecutors.

A jury convicted 30-year-old Nicholas Canfield of first-degree murder, sexual battery upon a child less than 12 years of age and three counts of aggravated child abuse April 4, the State Attorney’s Office for the 20th Judicial Circuit wrote in a news release.

Jurors also had to recommend whether Canfield should be sentenced to life in prison or get the death penalty — ultimately deciding to spare his life.

A judge sentenced him to life in prison April 9.

Canfield’s defense attorney, Kevin Shirley, told McClatchy News they were pleased with the outcome of the penalty phase of the sentencing.

“He maintained the whole time that anything he did was not designed to cause the children harm,” Shirley said.

Canfield’s mother testified that after she gave birth to her son as a teenager, he experienced sexual abuse from another family member and endured a rough childhood.

Shirley added his client was remorseful that the 2-year-old girl experienced harm under his watch.

Canfield became the primary caretaker for his girlfriend’s children while she was at work after he lost his restaurant job during the early days of the pandemic and moved in with them.

The afternoon of April 29, 2020, Canfield was found at the home performing CPR on the 2-year-old girl, deputies wrote in an arrest affidavit. He said he left her in the bath by herself, then came back to find her unresponsive in the water, according to deputies.

First responders took her to a hospital, where medical staff noticed signs of sexual trauma on the girl, as well as bruising on her face and neck and blunt force trauma to her head, investigators said.

“Her face was severely bruised,” the girl’s mother said through tears during testimony broadcast by WBBH. “It was purple, like all the way down her face, from where I could see, down to her shoulders. It looked really bad.”

The mom testified that Canfield told her that her older child bit the 2-year-old girl while fighting over a toy, causing some of her injuries.

The girl died in the hospital days later, prosecutors said.

The 2-year-old’s two siblings also showed signs of abuse, and investigators said Canfield would make the children face the wall with their arms up and kick them or step on their torsos, according to documents filed in Lee County.

“The evil acts of the defendant against a child, who could not protect themselves, a child who was relying on him to keep them safe, are unfathomable,” State Attorney Amira Fox said.

She added Canfield “does not deserve to walk among us.”

This story was originally published April 10, 2025 at 2:43 PM with the headline "Man sexually abused girlfriend’s 2-year-old, beat toddler to death, FL cops say."