A 12-year-old girl from Texas passed away on Monday after her mother and stepfather waited four days to get her medical attention for serious injuries, reports NBC News. Instead of taking her to a doctor, they tried to treat her with smoothies. Miranda Sipps, a cheerleader at Jourdanton Junior High School in Christine, Texas, was found in very bad condition when her mother called 911 on Monday evening, according to the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Emergency responders met them on the highway after they left their home and quickly took the unconscious girl to the hospital.
Unfortunately, Sipps was declared dead shortly after arriving in the emergency room.
An investigation by the sheriff’s office found that Sipps had serious and life-threatening injuries the Thursday before her death.
For four days, her mother and stepfather did not seek medical help, even though she was mostly unconscious. No other children were living in the home.
“She was not talking. She basically could flutter her eyes and move her hands a little bit over a four-day period,”
Sheriff David Soward said at a news conference,
“and they had her laying on a pallet in the house.”
Soward added that the couple tried
“to give her smoothies, but somebody who is unconscious is not able to swallow.”
The mother was identified as 36-year-old Denise Balbaneda, and the stepfather, Gerald Gonzales, 40. They were both arrested on Tuesday afternoon and charged with a first-degree felony for injury to a child by omission. Investigators think the couple didn’t seek medical care to keep the police away from their home. The cause of Sipps’ injuries is still being investigated.
#Clique, what are your thoughts?
