SAN ANTONIO – Emma Marie Rodriguez, 26, has been arrested in connection with an attack on her 2-year-old daughter that left the toddler with internal head injuries, an arrest warrant affidavit stated.
Rodriguez was arrested Thursday after San Antonio police showed up at her home in the 1200 block of Flanders Avenue. The affidavit stated that they had been called there for an injured person and noticed the little girl was unconscious and not breathing.
Officers said Rodriguez at first told them that the toddler had fallen in the shower and hit her head.
Later, she allegedly admitted to police that she had "slapped the child violently," then thrown her into her crib twice, the affidavit stated. The first time, the child hit her head on a wall, then on a metal part of the crib, the affidavit stated.
The girl, who turned two years old just last week, was taken to Christus Santa Rosa Children's Hospital where doctors reportedly gave police a grim outlook. The affidavit stated that they told investigators they didn't expect the child to survive more than two days. It stated that if she did remain alive, she would be in a "vegetative state."
At the home, clothes tiny enough for a toddler hung draped over a fence outside the home. Two men on the property declined to comment on the case.
The affidavit mentions that there were other children in the home at the time of the toddler's injury.
However, it is unclear whether they remained there, or have been removed and placed into protective custody.
Mary Walker, a spokeswoman for Child Protective Service, said at this time, the agency is prohibited by law from commenting on the case or any children involved.