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 attempting to nurse her back to health with smoothies, authorities said.
Miranda Sipps, a cheerleader at Jourdanton Junior High School in Christine, Texas, was found in critical condition when her mother called 911 on Monday evening, according to a statement from the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office. Christine is a small community about 45 miles south of San Antonio.
Emergency responders met Sipps and her mom on the highway after they had left their home and rushed the unconscious child to the hospital, officials said. Sipps was pronounced dead in the emergency room shortly after her arrival.
An investigation led by the sheriff’s office revealed that Sipps had suffered from severe and life-threatening injuries the previous Thursday. For the following four days, Sipps’ mother and stepfather failed to get her medical assistance even though she was largely unconscious. No other children were in the home.
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“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 said that Sipps’ parents attempted to treat her injuries by giving her smoothies with vitamins. As the girl’s condition worsened and she began having trouble breathing on Monday evening, her mother finally called 911.
“They were trying to give her smoothies, but somebody who is unconscious is not able to swallow,” Soward noted.
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The mother was identified as 36-year-old Denise Balbaneda and the stepfather as 40-year-old Gerald Gonzales. Both were arrested on Tuesday afternoon and charged with a first-degree felony for injury to a child by omission.
Investigators believed the couple avoided seeking medical attention to prevent law enforcement from coming to their home. Even after calling 911, Balbaneda had chosen to leave their house and meet emergency responders on the road.
The cause of Sipps’ injuries remains under investigation. Soward declined to provide further details, stating only that they were not related to her school, which had begun on Monday. The final autopsy report is pending.
Soward expressed his surprise at the unusual nature of the case.
“This is not something we typically run across or have, but in this business it’s always that way,” Soward remarked. “The next call’s going to be something strange or something you’ve never dealt with before, and this case here is a good example of that.”
Sipps would have turned 13 later this month.
The sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to further requests for updates.
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