A 12-year-old Texas cheerleader died Monday four days after she suffered mysterious “life-threatening” injuries that her parents tried to treat with smoothies and vitamins, authorities announced Wednesday.
Jourdanton Junior High School student Miranda Sipps died in the hospital Monday night after her mother finally called for help when the preteen went into respiratory distress, the Atascosa County Sheriff’s Office said.
The girl’s mother, Denise Balbaneda, and stepfather, Gerald Gonzalez, 40, were arrested for failing to seek medical help sooner for the girl during the four days while she was “mentally and physically incapacitated and non-responsive,” the sheriff said.
The pair didn’t sound the alarm sooner because they didn’t want to draw attention to the girl’s condition, Sheriff David Soward said during a press conference — without providing details about Sipps’ injuries or their cause, according to reports.
Authorities met the mother on the road as she was on the way to the hospital Monday night and EMS rushed Sipps to Methodist Hospital. Medical staff “vigorously” treated Sipps, but couldn’t save her, the sheriff’s office said.
The sheriff’s office launched an investigation and detectives determined the preteen suffered “serious life-threatening” injuries Thursday evening.
But the parents didn’t call 911 right away “even though she was mentally and physically incapacitated and non-responsive,” according to the sheriff’s department.
Balbaneda only called for help after her child went into respiratory distress, according to the law enforcement agency.
Before she died, the mother and stepfather allegedly fed the girl smoothies and vitamins even though she wasn’t responsive, Soward said, according to My San Antonio. He also said the pair might have tried to give the girl oxygen at some point.
“Basically they thought they could nurse her back to health and we do not think they wanted the attention that this would draw if the little girl was injured,” he said. “Which is strangely ironic, but that was their line of thinking.”
The girl could only “flutter her eyes and move her hands a little bit over a four-day period,” the top cop added.
He also alleged while the call for help came from their home, the mother left with the child before authorities arrived because she didn’t want law enforcement inside the house.
Soward didn’t offer any information on how Sipps was injured, though he noted she didn’t have any broken bones.
Balbaneda and Gonzalez were arrested Tuesday and charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury by omission, which is a first-degree felony.
The investigation is ongoing as authorities await a final autopsy report.
