A 4-year-old girl is in critical condition after her mother told police she kicked her because the child refused to brush her teeth, police say.
Iris Hernandez Rivas, 20, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, was charged with first-degree child abuse and first-degree assault.
Police were called to the Adventist Healthcare Shady Grove Medical Center in Rockville, Maryland, on Thursday after the young girl was taken to the hospital with head trauma and multiple bruises on her body.
Doctors believed the injuries were the result of physical abuse.
When detectives spoke with Rivas, she told them she kicked the girl after becoming angry that the girl did not brush her teeth. Rivas said the girl fell backward, hit her head on the living room wall and fell to the ground.
Rivas told police the girl went to the bathroom and turned on the shower. She said she found her daughter face down in the bathtub and waited about an hour before calling 911.
Rivas also told detectives the bruises on the victim’s body were from her striking her daughter with a belt several days prior. Rivas is currently being held without bond.
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The girl was transferred from the Rockville hospital to the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington. She was listed in critical condition.
