A 12-year-old Texas girl died Monday after her mother and stepfather failed to seek medical attention for four days following life-threatening injuries, instead trying to treat her with smoothies, authorities said.
Miranda Sipps, a cheerleader at Jourdanton High School in Christine, Texas, was found in critical condition when her mother called 911 Monday night, according to a statement from the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office. Christine is a small community about 45 miles (72 kilometers) south of San Antonio.
Emergency responders met Sipps and her mother on the highway after they left their home and rushed the unconscious child to a hospital, authorities said. Sipps was pronounced dead in the emergency room shortly after arriving.
An investigation by the sheriff’s office revealed that Sipps had suffered serious and life-threatening injuries the previous Thursday. For the next four days, Sipps’ mother and stepfather failed to provide medical assistance to her, even though she was largely unconscious. No other children were in the home.
“She couldn’t talk, she could barely blink and move her hands a little bit for four days,” Sheriff David Soward said at a news conference, “and they had her lying on a straw mattress in the house.”
Soward said Sipps’ parents tried to treat her injuries by giving her smoothies with vitamins. As the girl’s condition worsened and she began having trouble breathing Monday night, her mother finally called 911.
“They were trying to give him smoothies, but an unconscious person is not able to swallow,” Soward noted.
The mother was identified as Denise Balbaneda, 36, and the stepfather as Gerald Gonzales, 40. Both were arrested Tuesday afternoon and charged with first-degree felony injury by omission to a child.
Investigators believe the couple avoided seeking medical attention to prevent law enforcement from coming to their home. Even after calling 911, Balbaneda chose to leave their home and meet emergency services on the road.
The cause of Sipps’ injuries is under investigation. Soward declined to provide further details, saying only that they were not related to his school, which opened Monday. A final autopsy report is pending.
Soward expressed surprise at the unusual nature of the case.
“It’s not something we typically encounter, but in this industry, it’s always like that,” Soward noted. “The next call will be about something strange or something you’ve never had to deal with before and this case is a good example of that.”
Miranda Sipps would have turned 13 later this month.
The sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to further requests for updates.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
