HARLINGEN, Texas – It was the most tragic ending Frances Ramos could think of.
“I get mad, I get sad. I still can’t believe they’re gone,” Ramos said in an exclusive interview with KSAT.
Her high school best friend, Marlene Vidal, is now in jail charged with capital murder and arson after her kids were found in a burning car Friday.
“Even after high school, we were really good friends,” Ramos said. “She used to (be) very independent, hardworking.”
Ramos lives in the Rio Grande Valley, where Vidal is from. Ramos said Vidal was living in Edinburg with her kids.
Ramos said she lost touch with Vidal several years ago, but they reconnected about a month and a half ago.
“I did hear about her separation to her kids father,” Ramos said, “and as a friend, I felt for her, so I definitely reached out to her.”
She said she saw Vidal in person for the first time in a while, on Mother’s Day, just weeks ago.
“That’s when I turned and looked at my husband and said, ‘This is not the person I know and remember,’” Ramos said. “I was very concerned.
“From the way she was acting, the way she was interacting with people, very paranoid,” Ramos continued. “She told me she was hearing things, seeing things, she hadn’t slept, you could see.
“I noticed she had a wig on that day, and the next day I saw that she had shaved herself,” Ramos said. “She told me she was in a mental hospital a year ago. She said they had cleared her. She told me she was going to leave and move to San Antonio.”
“She wasn’t known to have any type of drug issue. She didn’t drink, she didn’t do anything,” Ramos said, “especially with her son that required a lot of attention. This was definitely mental health-related for sure.”
When asked about the children, Ramos said the kids seemed happy and taken care of.
She said the daughter “would go and just randomly hug her mom and kiss her. Just very lovable. You could see the love between a mother and a daughter. I saw it with my own eyes. She loved those kids.”
Ramos said Vidal’s mental health seemed to be worsening, so she stayed in touch and tried to keep an eye on the kids.
Ramos said Vidal’s sisters tried to intervene all week, even calling Child Protective Services.
“Yes, there’s a CPS case number,” Ramos said. “It was a recent one that they opened up.”
Two days before the tragedy, Ramos said, “She was telling me that she was seeing things, that she would see her daughter possessed, that seeing people in her house, shadows, people were out to get her, the FBI was out to get her.”
Ramos said that day, she and Vidal’s family members came up with a plan to get law enforcement involved.
“We called the police, state troopers, everybody was involved. They knew that she was in a psychosis at that point,” Ramos said, “and then we were going to meet somewhere so the police can get there.”
Ramos said she and her sister accompanied Vidal and the kids to a Walmart in Edinburg.
They were concerned because they said Vidal wanted to throw a barbecue and went to Walmart to buy a grill and lighter fluid.
“We were very concerned. If she goes home with the barbecue pit and the lighter fluid, she might start a fire in her home,” Ramos said. “She might burn down her home, and of course, at that point, it affects her kids as well.”
At Walmart, Ramos said she took a video of Vidal speaking to police.
Edinburg Police confirmed to KSAT on Monday that officers did have contact with Vidal days before the incident, but did not elaborate on what it was for.
“I told that police officer everything. I let them know our concerns, her sister’s concerns. I provided the CPS case number,” Ramos said. “I told them how she was in a psychosis at that moment. I told him the history that last year, she had her first breakdown, how she had to get hospitalized.”
She said the officer observed Vidal’s behavior.
“Basically said that they were going to do a quick evaluation, but if they didn’t see a threat, you know, there wasn’t much they can do,” Ramos said. “She didn’t have a knife or was being a threat to herself or her kids or anybody at that point that they couldn’t do anything.”
Ramos said she was shocked officers left without intervening.
“For a moment, when I saw them detain her, you know, talking to her, I felt hope,” Ramos said. “If they just would have taken action right there and then, she could have been hospitalized and Friday would have never happened.”
After the police encounter, Ramos said Vidal drove to San Antonio and stopped picking up phone calls.
Ramos woke up to the images of a car on fire on Friday, and police said Vidal’s children were dead inside. Vidal was arrested for capital murder.
“I just got chills all over my body,” Ramos said. “That’s exactly what we were trying to prevent. I broke down.”
KSAT reached out to Child Protective Services and the Edinburg Police Department about Ramos’ comments. CPS responded with the following:
“The safety of children is our unwavering priority.
“When a child dies and there is any concern of abuse or neglect, DFPS conducts a thorough review of prior contact with the family to confirm policies and procedures were followed appropriately and identify gaps and opportunities to strengthen our work.
“Since this case is still an ongoing investigation, we’re unable to provide further details.”
Child Protective Services
Edinburg Police referred to its original statement from Monday, which is included below:
“Edinburg police officers made contact days prior with the subject involved in the case.
“At the time of the interaction, there was no basis to make an arrest or execute an emergency detention.”
Edinburg Police Department
The Bexar County Medical Examiner has yet to release the official identities and ages of the children found Friday, as well as their causes of death.
Child Protective Services told KSAT this week that there will soon be a fatality report released, but it is not finished yet.
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