Inset: Hayden Humphreys (Houston police). Background: The 18000 block of McKay Drive in Houston, Texas, where Humphreys beat a wheelchair-bound man to death (Google Maps).
A Texas man is likely headed to prison for nearly a decade after he beat to death a wheelchair-bound man who had all his toes amputated.
Hayden Humphreys, 33, pleaded guilty on Thursday to manslaughter in the death of 38-year-old Rudy Ricky Diaz in Houston. Humphreys was walking shortly before midnight on July 23, 2022, in the 18000 block of McKay Drive after leaving a club when he came upon Diaz, a probable cause arrest affidavit said.
Humphreys claimed when he walked by Diaz, the man in the wheelchair asked him for money. When Humphreys gave him some, Diaz asked for more money and “stood up” in a threatening manner. Humphreys claimed he started punching Diaz to defend himself. But witnesses said they saw Humphreys on top of Diaz “throwing haymakers” as the victim lay unresponsive on the ground.
Other witnesses who worked in the area said they knew Diaz and he was “harmless” and not a threat to anyone.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Paramedics rushed Diaz to the hospital, where he died about two weeks later. An autopsy determined he died of blunt force trauma.
Detectives reviewed video footage from the area that did not show the beating but captured Humphreys “behaving erratically” and appearing to be intoxicated. Humphreys admitted to detectives that he had a few drinks that night.
While in jail, Humphreys talked to his father on a recorded jail call in which he said he wanted to go out drinking on the night in question but no one wanted to go out so he decided to go by himself. He said when he goes out, “dumb s— like this happens” and also stated “when I”m left alone, I’m a f—ing child,” the affidavit said.
Humphreys claimed he blacked out and didn’t remember the incident. His father admonished him for being “stupid” while drinking.
“I know I lost my f—ing mind that night,” Humphreys said, per the affidavit. “I know I did.”
The defendant was originally charged with murder but pleaded guilty to manslaughter as part of a deal with prosecutors. He’s facing eight years in prison when he’s formally sentenced on Dec. 1, local ABC affiliate KTRK reported.
All 10 of Diaz’s toes were amputated a few months before the incident, his brother Benji Diaz told KTRK. He wishes Humphreys could be sent to prison for longer.
“Anybody who is out there hurting people in that type of manner or taking advantage of people who can’t defend themselves,” the brother told the TV station. “I don’t think they deserve to be free at all.”
