Mother arrested for second time in child-abuse case

WEST VALLEY CITY — A woman previously convicted of abusing her young daughter has been arrested again on suspicion of abusing the same girl, who was in extremely critical condition Monday at a local hospital.

Emperatiz Meza-Reyna, 21, was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail last week for investigation of felony child abuse and an immigration detainer. Information about the arrest was released Monday.

About 8:45 p.m. on July 22, police officers were called to Primary Children's Medical Center, where a young girl was being treated for severe head injuries, said West Valley Police Capt. Tom McLachlan. Law enforcers believe the girl is either 5 or 7 years old.

The girl was originally taken to Pioneer Valley Hospital, where she went into cardiac arrest, he said.

At Primary Children's, the young girl had to undergo emergency surgery to open her skull and relieve pressure on her brain, McLachlan said. The mother told doctors her daughter fell down a flight of stairs. Doctors, however, did not believe her story, noting the injuries were consistent with "a massive blow or blows to the head," according to a Salt Lake County Jail report.

The girl also had bite marks as well as bruising on her legs, buttocks and feet that were "consistent with abuse," according to jail records.

In January 2008, Meza-Reyna was arrested by the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office for investigation of abusing the same girl.

Deputies were called to Meza-Reyna's residence by her live-in boyfriend who reported she was abusing her daughter, said Salt Lake County Sheriff's Lt. Don Hutson. After the boyfriend dialed 911, Meza-Reyna became enraged and kicked and grabbed at the boyfriend, Hutson said.

The girl was taken to Primary Children's Medical Center to be checked but was released the same day.

Investigators discovered it wasn't the first time the young girl had allegedly been abused by Meza-Reyna. She told detectives that she had hit her daughter in the past with her hands, a belt and an electrical cord with knots tied in it, Hutson said.

The child had lived with her grandmother in Mexico until November 2007 when she moved to live with her mother in Utah. When asked why she abused her daughter, the only explanation Meza-Reyna could give investigators was she "cannot handle the crying," he said.

Meza-Reyna also told investigators she had also been a victim of child abuse by her relatives, though it was unknown Monday what kind of abuse she may have suffered, Hutson said.