ALEXIS SALAZ - 20 Months/ Accused: Samantha Salaz & Mary Horsley - Colorado Springs CO

Mother, nanny charged with trying to drown infant in toilet


April 8, 2011



COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- A Colorado Springs mother and her nanny are under arrest for allegedly trying to drown a 20-month-old child in a toilet.

Samantha Salaz, 19, and the child’s adult caregiver, 51-year-old Mary Horsley, both face charges of attempted murder and felony child abuse.

Police responded to a home in the 2400 block of Farragut Ave.

Thursday afternoon on reports of a 20-month-old child unconscious and not breathing. The child was rushed to Memorial Hospital and was in intensive care Friday morning.

Police say the child suffered “serious bodily injury that was not accidental.”

Authorities would not say if the victim is a boy or girl.

The attempted murder trial of a
toddler in Colorado Springs will go forward. The girl's mother and
aunt are accused of taping her wrists, ankles, eyes and mouth with tape
before leaving her in a running shower.


The girl's mother, Samantha Salaz and her aunt, Mary
Horsley, were in court Friday for a preliminary hearing and it was
decided that there is enough evidence to go forward with the case.
Meanwhile, the 20-month-old victim remains in the hospital, having
suffered brain damage from the abuse.
According to police, officers
were called to the 2400 block of Farragut Avenue in Colorado Springs
last Thursday afternoon after being told a 20-month-old child was not
breathing.


When paramedics arrived, the
toddler was unconscious, and was taken to Memorial Hospital with serious
bodily injuries. Police say further investigation into the incident
revealed that the injuries were not accidental, leading officers to
arrest the victim’s mother and another woman in the home.


The arrest affidavit says when police arrived, the
little girl was unconscious and not breathing and had black tape marks
on her wrists, ankles, eyes and mouth. She was pronounced dead at 3:10
p.m., but just after 4 p.m., detectives were told the child was
breathing again.


According to the affidavit, Salaz admitted to police
say that she had seen her aunt, Horsley, in the bathroom with her
daughter earlier in the day. The toddler was laying in the shower, bound
by tape, and being sprayed by water as a disciplinary action. Salaz
admitted that she said nothing to stop Horsley before going into a
bedroom and falling asleep. The affidavit goes on to say Horsley
allegedly left the toddler in the bathroom with the water running before
also leaving the room and falling asleep.


A 7-year-old boy told police he was the one to later
find the little girl in the bathroom and ran to get help from Salaz and
Horsley. They called 911 and tried to revive the victim.


Also in the court document, the 7-year-old boy says
Horsley was mad at the little girl for knocking over her drink, and she
had spanked her on the behind with a belt before bringing her into the
shower.


Salaz, 19, and Horsley, 50, were taken into custody on April 7.


The child's grandfather, Richard Salaz, says he just wants answers.


"I have a million and one questions for her I guess
the most important one right now is why or how this could've happened,"
Salaz said.


In addition to attempted first degree murder and
child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury, the mother, Samantha
Salaz, has now been charged with two counts of crime of violence. If
found guilty, each of those two counts of crime of violence carry a
sentence of up to 48 years. If found guilty on all counts, Salaz could
spend the rest of her life in jail.


Salaz and Horsley will be back in court May 23 at 8:30 a.m.

http://www.kktv.com/news/headlines/Toddler_In_Attempted_Murder_Case_Suffered_Brain_Damage_From_Abuse_121418154.html?ref=154

There are new developments in the story about a toddler allegedly abused by her mother and her mother’s aunt.


In an 11 News exclusive, the biological father just
found out the girl is his after a DNA test confirmed it Friday, May 13.
He and his wife tell 11 News he didn't even know she existed. They now
want to take care of her.Joseph Saunders told the judge in court Tuesday, May 17 he not only wanted custody, but medical rights as well.


They spent the day at the
hospital Monday meeting his daughter for the first time. Unfortunately,
it was filled with mixed emotions.


According to case workers who were in court Tuesday,
the little girl is in a persistent vegetative state with no likelihood
of improvement. She is unresponsive and cannot communicate in any
manner. She is being fed and hydrated through a nasal tube. She cries
and moans non-stop which case workers say is disturbing to caretakers in
the hospital. They also say she has severe brain damage and will most
likely never have any higher brain function.


Her mother Samantha Salaz, 19, and her aunt Mary
Horsley, 50, are charged with attempted murder and felony child abuse
after police say they bound the toddler with tape around her wrists,
eyes, ankles, and mouth, before leaving her in a tub with the shower
running.


Saunders first thought the toddler could be his when
he saw Salaz's mug shot on 11 News; she was his ex-girlfriend. He told
11 News Salaz initially told him roughly two years ago that she
miscarried their child after their breakup.


When Saunders heard the girl's age in our report, he
felt she might be his. He then filed for the DNA paternity test which
was confirmed Friday. While in court Tuesday, Saunders and his family
petitioned for custody and the medical rights of his daughter. No
decisions on custody or medical rights were made, but the case will be
continued Monday, May 23.


Both Saunders and his wife told us that they're just hoping to give this little girl the home and love she deserves.


The couple agreed to do an interview with us, but their lawyer told them not to because of the “difficulties in the case.”


According to police, this all started when officers
were called to the 2400 block of Farragut Avenue in Colorado Springs on
April 7 after being told a 20-month-old child was not breathing.


When paramedics arrived, the toddler was unconscious,
and was taken to Memorial Hospital with serious bodily injuries. Police
say further investigation into the incident revealed that the injuries
were not accidental, leading officers to arrest the victim’s mother and
another woman in the home.


The arrest affidavit says when police arrived, the
little girl was unconscious and not breathing and had black tape marks
on her wrists, ankles, eyes and mouth. She was pronounced dead at 3:10
p.m., but just after 4 p.m., detectives were told the child was
breathing again.


According to the affidavit, Salaz admitted to police
say that she had seen her aunt, Horsley, in the bathroom with her
daughter earlier in the day. The toddler was lying in the shower, bound
by tape, and being sprayed by water as a disciplinary action. Salaz
admitted that she said nothing to stop Horsley before going into a
bedroom and falling asleep. The affidavit goes on to say Horsley
allegedly left the toddler in the bathroom with the water running before
also leaving the room and falling asleep.


A 7-year-old boy told police he was the one to later
find the little girl in the bathroom and ran to get help from Salaz and
Horsley. They called 911 and tried to revive the victim.


Also in the court document, the 7-year-old boy says
Horsley was mad at the little girl for knocking over her drink and she
had spanked her on the behind with a belt before bringing her into the
shower.


Salaz is charged with attempted first degree murder
and child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury, along with two
counts of crime of violence. If she is found guilty, each of those
two counts of crime of violence carries a sentence of up to 48 years.
If she is found guilty on all counts, Salaz could spend the rest of her
life in jail.

http://www.kktv.com/news/headlines/Man_Asks_For_DNA_Test_After_Seeing_Abused_Girl_On_TV_122078279.html

The 19-year-old mother of a baby
left bound by tape under a running shower earlier this year agreed on
Wednesday to a plea deal calling for her to testify against her aunt.

Samantha Salaz faces 14 to 28 years in prison as part of the deal,
which was agreed upon during a hearing Wednesday in front of 4th
Judicial District Judge Thomas Kennedy.

She had faced attempted first-degree murder and child abuse charges
in connection with the near-death of her daughter, Alexis, in early
April.

Alexis suffered “severe, profound” brain injuries that will likely
affect her the rest of her life. A 7-year-old boy, a relative of the
girl, found her lying face up in ice-cold water running from a shower,
Colorado Springs police said. She suffered from severe hypothermia,
authorities said.

Salaz now is expected to plead guilty to charges of child abuse
resulting in serious bodily injury charge and a crime of violence, said
Lee Richards, 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman.

Richards added that in exchange for the lighter charge, Salaz will be asked to testify against her aunt, Mary Horsley, 50.

Officers initially were told that the girl, then 20 months old, nearly drowned in a toilet.

But detectives testified in a May preliminary hearing that Salaz’s
aunt, Mary Horsley, 50, repeatedly beat the girl for spilling a drink.

Detectives suspect Horsley dropped the girl on her head twice and
spanked her with a belt before binding her with black electrical tape
and placing her in a cold shower three times.

Each time Alexis was placed in the shower, Salaz tried to “zone out”
by smoking cigarettes, straightening her hair and taking a nap,
detectives said.

The boy woke Salaz and told her that her that the baby was in the
shower. The child wasn’t conscious or breathing when rescuers arrived,
but was resuscitated at the hospital.


Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/deal-122621-year-baby.html#ixzz1U5BsFFr2

A woman accused of trying to kill her niece's 20-month-old daughter has waived her right to a speedy trial.
Our 11 News crew in the courtroom tells us both the
defense and prosecution filed a joint motion for a postponement. The
original trial date was set for October 11, and has now been pushed back
to December 6, an almost two month delay.
Prosecutors say Mary Horsley and the baby's mother used tape on the toddler and left her in a running
shower. The little girl now has permanent brain damage.
Horsley faces charges of attempted murder and felony child abuse. The baby's mother, Samantha
Salaz, has agreed to testify against Horsley as part of a plea deal.
http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/Aunt_Accused_Of_Attempted_Murder_In_Court_129051833.html

Updated: 6:16 PM Sep 30, 2011
Mother Sentenced To 24 Years For Abusing Child
Samantha Salaz, a Springs mother who pleaded guilty to abusing her little girl, will serve 24 years in prison.

A Springs mother was told Friday that she'll serve 24 years in prison for abusing her little girl. Samantha Salaz will also have to serve five years probation after she is released.

Salaz's child, Alexis, was bound with tape and left in a running shower. The 20-month-old is reportedly recuperating well, but may never fully recover from her severe brain injuries.

Salaz made a plea deal to testify against her aunt, Mary Horsley, who allegedly left the child in the bathroom with the water running after disciplining her. The plea deal reduced the charges against Salaz.

Prior to the plea deal, both Salaz and Horsley had said they were innocent of attempting to kill the toddler.

According to police, officers were called to the 2400 block of Farragut Avenue in Colorado Springs earlier this year after being told a 20-month-old child was not breathing.

When paramedics arrived, the toddler was unconscious, and was taken to Memorial Hospital with serious bodily injuries. Police say further investigation into the incident revealed that the injuries were not accidental, leading officers to arrest the victim’s mother and another woman in the home.

Salaz, 19, and Horsley, 50, were taken into custody on April 7.

Joseph Saunders, Alexis' father, and his wife Lizzie spoke at the sentencing Friday. He said Salaz initially lied about having a miscarriage, but he knew the child was his when he saw the reports on KKTV 11 News.

Additionally, he said that the little girl's doctor revealed that she is regenerating brain cells - something they never thought would happen. Her brain function is now much closer to that of a normal two-year-old.

Saunders says Alexis is playing well with her three other siblings.

http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/Mother_To_Receive_Sentence_After_Abusing_Toddler_130841983.html

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- A Colorado Springs
woman accused of trying to kill her niece's 20-month-old daughter is
scheduled to be in court Friday morning for a motions hearing.Prosecutors
said Mary Horsley and the baby's mother used black electrical tape to
restrain the toddler at the hands and ankles, as well as over her eyes
and mouth and left her in a running shower.The girl now has permanent brain damage.
Horsley has been charged with attempted murder
and felony child abuse. She was also raising two grandchildren at the
time of the attempted drowning.The baby's mother, Samantha Salaz,
has agreed to testify against Horsley as part of a plea deal.
Salaz testified that she watched Horsley try to drown the toddler.
Salaz was sentenced to 24 years in prison Sept. 30.
http://www.coloradoconnection.com/news/story.aspx?id=682661#.TrQWA3KwV6Q

Tears for victim bring judge's removal in baby's near drowning
November 04, 2011 5:18 PM

LANCE BENZEL
THE GAZETTE
An El Paso County district judge who grew emotional while sentencing a teen mother for child abuse has recused himself from presiding over a case against the woman’s co-defendant.

Fourth Judicial District Judge Anthony L. Kennedy disqualified himself Friday after defense attorneys for Mary Horsley raised alarms over whether he could remain neutral in the case against their client.

Horsley, 50, is due for trial in November on charges of trying to kill 20-month-old Alexis Salaz at her Colorado Springs home last April.

The toddler suffered serious brain injuries after authorities say Horsley, enraged over a spilled drink, bound the girl with electrical tape and left her under running shower. The child’s mother, Horsley’s niece Samantha Salaz, did nothing to intervene.

Salaz, 19, pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury.

At her Sept. 30 sentencing hearing, Kennedy was overcome by tears before imposing Salaz’s 24-year sentence, telling the court that he keeps a picture of Alexis on his desk as a reminder of people’s capacity for cruelty.

The judge said the photo was also a testament of the “kindness” of Alexis’ birth father, Joseph Saunders, whose family took custody of the brain-damaged girl and has nurtured her through slow but steady progress.

Saunders didn’t know about the child until media coverage of the case. He told The Gazette that Salaz claimed she had miscarried.

In an Oct. 5 motion seeking a recusal, Horsley’s defense attorney, Ed Farry of Colorado Springs, said the judge’s emotional bonds with the victim had created an “intimidating” atmosphere for his client.

“Presumably, the court thinks not only of the victim every day, on the occasion of seeing her pictures, but also thinks every day of defendant Horsley,” Farry said in court documents.

Kennedy initially denied Farry’s request but reversed course Friday morning.

According to a court transcript, Kennedy said his “close relationship” with the Saunders family could create an appearance of impropriety.

Kennedy also presided over the dependency and neglect case in which custody was transferred to the Saunders family.

Horsley, who has pleaded not guilty, is due for a review hearing Monday before Judge David S. Prince, who was assigned to preside over the case.





Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/judge-127936-emotional-case.html#ixzz1cw214GFT

OMG what horrific torture that poor baby went through. I can't believe a mother would allow someone to do that to her baby. Both perps should be subject to the same torture they did to this baby. I hope and pray that Alexis has some future. Originally the articles indicated she would be a vegetable for the rest of her life but the father says there has been some regneration of brain cells and she's improving. That is wonderful news but I can't imagine that the child won't have psychological problems from such horrific torture. Whenever I think I've heard everything, I come across a case like this and him shocked all over again. That poor sweet baby.

Posted: 8:31 AM Dec 6, 2011
Aunt Accused Of Attempted Murder Appears In Court

Mary Horsley, the woman accused of trying to kill her niece's 20-month-old daughter, appeared in court Thursday afternoon for a preliminary hearing. The judge decided there was enough evidence to send her to trial.

Prosecutors say Horsley used tape on the toddler and left her in a running shower in April. The little girl suffered brain damage. Both Horsley and the girls mother, Samantha Salaz, were arrested.

Salaz, Horsley's niece, accepted a plea deal in August. In it, she pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury and a crime of violence. She also agreed to testify in Horsley's trial.

Salaz was sentenced to 24 years.

At Horsley's appearance Thursday, Salaz testified against her aunt for the first time. She told the court that she'd watched Horsley discipline the 20-month-old child by putting the child into a plastic storage tub, filling it half way up with water and locking the lid with the girl inside. She said this style of discipline began in January.

At Salaz's sentencing, the little girl's doctor revealed that she is regenerating brain cells - something they never thought would happen. Her brain function is now much closer to that of a normal two-year-old.

Horsley faces charges of attempted murder and felony child abuse. Only the child abuse count was dealt with Thursday.

http://www.kktv.com/home/headlines/Aunt_Accused_Of_Attempted_Murder_In_Court_129051833.html

I am glad the mother got 24 years and hope she gets more for the other charges. I hope that POS aunt gets life in prison or better yet that she would be taped up like that poor baby and placed eternally under a shower. She must have hurt or abused others as I can't imagine how someone her age could abuse a 20 month old baby like that suddenly. She is pure evil.

While I'm glad about the sentencing in this case, I don't understand how so many other cases where parents or boyfriends/girlfriends ABUSE AND MURDER babies and get away with much lesser sentences. As you read through the cases in this forum, it's disheartening when so many get lenient sentences. At least this case is more in line with the crime.

A Colorado Springs woman who faced charges over a grand-niece who
sustained a brain injury has been convicted of child abuse resulting in
serious injury.
Jurors acquitted Mary Horsley of attempted murder Friday
but convicted her of child abuse. She also was convicted of abusing two
grandchildren.

The Gazette reports defense attorney Ed Farry plans to appeal.

Horsley was charged after investigators said it appeared 21-month-old
Alexis Salaz had been placed in a cold shower with tape over her eyes
and mouth as punishment last year.

The girl's mother and Horsley's niece, 19-year-old Samantha Salaz,
pleaded guilty to child abuse resulting in serious injury and received a
24-year prison sentence.

Farry had argued Samantha Salaz was to blame for the child's injuries.

http://www.9news.com/news/local/article/257014/222/Colorado-Springs-woman-convicted-of-child-abuse-

A two-year-old girl has made an
astonishing recovery after she was bound in duct tape and left in a cold
shower until she lost consciousness.
Though
Alexis Salaz was initially pronounced brain dead at the hospital, she
has made a remarkable recovery, surmounting both physical and mental
disabilities.
The child’s
aunt, 50-year-old Mary Horsley, was found guilty of felony child abuse
and faces between 20 to 48 years in prison when sentenced next month.
During the trial, jurors heard that
the Colorado Springs woman would often put tape over her niece’s eyes
and put her in the shower as punishment for any small misstep.
Deputy
District Attorney Debbie Pearson told the court of the torture borne by
Alexis. ‘If she moved, she was dunked. If she cried, she was dunked,’
the Colorado Springs Gazette reported.
Ms Pearson continued: ‘Alexis never had a break. It was constant, constant torture.’
Alexis’
mother and Horsley’s niece, 19-year-old Samantha Salaz, also pleaded
guilty to child abuse resulting in serious injury, and received a
24-year prison sentence.
Horsley’s attorney, Ed Farry, plans to appeal. He argued that Salaz – not Horsley – was to blame for Alexis’ injuries.
However,
Horsley was acquitted of the most serious charge against her -attempted
murder – but was convicted for abusing two of her grandchildren as
well.
The child’s father,
Joseph Saunders, said in an email to KRDO that he was unaware he was a
father until the trial; Salaz apparently told him that he had
miscarried.


'If she moved, she was dunked. If she cried, she was dunked. Alexis never had a break. It was constant, constant torture.'

Still, the father is grateful for her daughter, and notices improvement every day.

He
said: ‘Within months of living with my wife, our kids and I, she had
started regaining some physical activity, and its seemed as if her brain
started “turning on.”’
He added: ‘She is a true miracle.’
Alexis
has a long road to recovery yet – according to Mr Saunders, she has to
attend therapy five times a week, and cannot walk, talk, or eat on her
own.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2117136/Alexis-Salaz-Miracle-recovery-baby-girl-declared-brain-dead.html#ixzz1pfACTxK3

I hope this POS aunt gets the full 48 years in jail. She should have been convicted of attempted murder. It's a shame she wasn't but maybe the judge will give her a long jail term. I wish they would tape her up and put her in a shower or a bin and dunk her under water. What a horrifying life this baby had. I hope she can somehow recuperate from this travesty.

Woman gets max sentence for abusing child with cold water

May 29, 2012 1:41 PM
MATT STEINER, THE GAZETTE

While imposing the maximum sentence Tuesday against a woman convicted of child abuse for torturing a 21-month-old girl with cold water, a judge lamented that his options “pale in comparison to any justice that should be doled out.”

Mary Horsley, 51, was sentenced to 40 years in prison for her convictions on child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury and attempted child abuse with serious bodily injury. She also was sentenced to two years in the El Paso County jail for her conviction on two charges of misdemeanor child abuse, followed by five years of probation.

Fourth Judicial District Judge David Prince ruled that the sentences would run consecutively.

“It is beyond the ability of the court to deliver justice in this case,” he said.

Addressing Horsley directly, Prince said: “The girl that came to live in your home is no more.” He said she is “a shadow, a shell, almost an insult” to who she used to be.

Prosecutors showed during Horsley’s trial that she bound 21-month-old Alexis Salaz with tape and repeatedly showered her with cold water when she misbehaved. Evidence also showed that, on occasion, Alexis had been beaten with a spatula and a belt and dunked into a tub of cold water.

Alexis and her mother, Samantha Salaz, had moved in with Horsley, Samantha’s aunt.

Joseph Saunders, Alexis’ biological father, was at the sentencing hearing Tuesday with his wife, Elizabeth Saunders.

The couple, who did not know that Alexis existed until Salaz and Horsley were arrested, have adopted the child.

With her husband at her side, Elizabeth Saunders described a child that “can’t walk, talk, eat, sleep or interact with other kids.”

“Mary Horsley decided to play God with our daughter’s life,” Elizabeth Saunders said.

Horsley was arrested April 8, 2011, one day after Alexis was bound and left under a cold shower for spilling a drink at Horsley’s house on North Farragut Avenue in Colorado Springs, an arrest affidavit said.

Samantha Salaz told police that her aunt had bound Alexis and put her in the shower. Police found tape residue and bruises on the toddler after medical staff at Memorial Hospital revived her.

Salaz testified against Horsley after taking a plea deal herself and agreeing to spend 24 years in prison.

Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/horsley-139384-child-cold.html#ixzz1wO2e2RtE

Mom's sentence reduced in child abuse case

August 28, 2012 1:00 AM
LANCE BENZEL, The Gazette

An El Paso County judge on Monday shaved four years from the sentence of a Colorado Springs woman who pleaded guilty to ignoring abuse that left her toddler daughter with severe brain damage.

Samantha Salaz, 20, was re-sentenced to 20 years in prison at a brief hearing before Fourth Judicial District Judge David A. Prince, who cited her cooperation against her aunt, a co-defendant in the case.

Prosecutors objected to the reduction, and said the toddler's adoptive family was also opposed.

The act of mercy comes roughly six months after Salaz's aunt, Mary Horsely, was convicted of felony child abuse for taping Salaz's 21-month-old daughter's face, wrists and ankles and leaving her under a running shower in April 2011 – all because Horsley had grown angry over a spilled drink.

Doctors initially pronounced the girl dead but managed to revive her, though not before she suffered severe brain injuries.

Salaz told authorities she was aware of the abuse but didn't intervene because Horsley made her promise to live by her rules.

In court on Monday, Salaz wept and said she wasn't the same person who walked into court after her arrest. She's completed a jail program called "Thinking for a Change," is working on her GED, and has learned from her mistakes, she said.

Salaz and Horsley were each charged with attempted murder after the attack, but prosecutors agreed to toss the count against Salaz in exchange for a guilty plea to felony child abuse and her cooperation against Horsley. Salaz was sentenced to 24 years in prison by District Judge Anthony Kennedy.

In reducing that penalty, Prince pointed to testimony that investigators accused Horsley of a "pattern" of conduct in which she abused other children after allowing their mothers to move in and live with her.

Salaz moved in with Horsley several months earlier after leaving her mother's home, where she said she was coaxed into sex as a teen by her mother's husband. Mauricio Porras was convicted of Salaz's rape last year.

In a hopeful twist to the tragic story, the injured girl was adopted by her birth father, Joseph Saunders, who learned of her existence through news reports. Saunders said Salaz broke off their relationship and told him she had miscarried.

Saunders and his wife have cared for the girl through her extensive therapy, saying she is making unexpected progress.

According to lead prosecutor Deborah Pearson, however, doctors say there's been no change in the girl's overall condition.

"Quite frankly, there won't be," she added.

Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/gazette-143797-lance-abuse.html#ixzz24rNmSrlm