LELAND GARCIA - 3 yo - Las Vegas NV

By the time police were called to his
house, it was too late for 3-year-old Leland Garcia. No longer
breathing, bruises all over his body, the Monday morning trip to Sunrise
Hospital and Medical Center would not save him.Police have
arrested Leland's mother and her boyfriend on a murder charge in
connection with his death.Las Vegas police have seen a 9
percent jump in child abuse cases over the same period last year.But
what is most troubling to detectives is that the severity of the abuse
seems to be worse this year."We're seeing more of it lately, and
the injuries sustained to these children is immense," Lt. Ray Steiber
said during a Thursday afternoon news conference.The injuries can
include broken bones or shaken baby syndrome, which can lead to brain
damage, blindness or death.Three-year-old Leland was the first
death by child abuse the department has investigated this year. He was
one of seven siblings, some of whom were also abused, but Leland bore
the worst of it, Steiber said.
His mother's boyfriend, 23-year-old
Jesse Parsons, would discipline the boy by striking him with a metal
object or a wooden paddle, police said. The boy's mother, 29-year-old
Elizabeth Tara Stack, was present for many of the attacks, police said.Steiber
did not elaborate on why Leland was abused more violently than his
brothers and sisters. Parsons was not the father of any of the children.When
Stack called police to their east valley home at 12:11 a.m. Monday,
Leland was unconscious, with severe bruising to his head and body. The
injuries, which were also internal, were consistent with blunt force
trauma, police said.The same morning, investigators learned
another sibling, a 7-year-old, had lacerations to the buttocks. The
child was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.Leland's
siblings have been placed in protective custody. Clark County
Department of Family Services spokeswoman could not specify whether that
meant the children were at a foster home or with other family members.Stack
had run-ins with Child Protective Services before because of domestic
violence incidents involving her former husband, the children's father.
In June 2006, the department was called over a beating between the two,
but the charge was unsubstantiated. The couple were informed of the
effects domestic violence has on children.In November 2007,
police responded to an accusation of emotional abuse and a threat of
harm between Stack and her then-husband. Investigators found that the
husband had completed impulse control classes for an unrelated matter.
Stack was offered a referral for domestic violence or relationship
counseling, but she refused, according to the department. The case was
closed when the father moved away.The Metropolitan Police
Department investigated 1,563 cases of child abuse in 2009. Eight
percent of those involved substantial bodily harm to the child.This
year, the department has investigated 250 cases, and 12 percent have
involved substantial bodily harm.Steiber said he doesn't know why
the cases have become more violent. He speculated that the stresses of
life, including joblessness, might be a factor.The majority of
cases involve young or new parents, he said.He encourages parents
who might be stressed to step back before lashing out physically on a
child. He said they should seek help, such as calling a family member.
Placing a child in a safe place of the house also helps, he said."Once
law enforcement gets involved in a case involving abuse of a child,
it's too late," Steiber said.Parsons faces a charge of murder by
child abuse, four counts of child abuse with substantial bodily harm and
two counts of child abuse. Stack faces a charge of second-degree murder
by child neglect and four counts of child neglect with substantial
bodily harm.

Bail was set Friday morning at $100,000 for a woman arrested in connection
with the death of her 3-year-old son, who police say died as a result of
injuries inflicted on the child by her boyfriend.
Elizabeth Tara Stack, 29, appeared via videoconference this morning in Las
Vegas Justice Court.
Her co-defendant, Jesse Parsons, 23, who was her boyfriend of three months
when her son, Leland Chris-Angel Garcia, 3, died, waived a preliminary hearing
until his competency can be evaluated in district court. His bail wasn't
addressed.
Deputy public defender Tim O'Brien declined to comment on the case or his
client's mental state.
Police allege Parsons caused the boy’s injuries. Stack is charged because
investigators say she was aware of the abuse in her home but didn’t intervene to
stop it.
Police responded at about midnight Monday to a report of an unresponsive
child at a home in the 6000 block of Bing Cherry Drive in the eastern valley.
The boy was taken to Sunrise Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police said an autopsy revealed the child suffered severe bruising to the
head, the majority of his abdomen and his lower body; the boy also had internal
injuries consistent with blunt force trauma.
Police said Parsons would frequently discipline Leland by striking him with
different objects. He would also strike the other siblings, but the attacks were
usually less violent, authorities said.
Stack’s court-appointed attorney, Joel Mann, asked Justice of the Peace Karen
Bennett-Haron for bail to be set at $100,000. He cited Stack’s lack of criminal
history and ties to the community, saying she has lived in Las Vegas since she
was 8 years old and has family living in the area.
“She’s obviously looking at six serious charges, one of them being
second-degree murder involving her own child,” he said. “The allegations arise
from her neglect or failure to step in but in no way under her own hand.”
Deputy District Attorney Brian Kochevar said he didn’t oppose a bail of
$100,000 but asked for it not to be any lower.
Bennett-Haron granted Mann’s request.
A preliminary hearing in the case is set for March 25 but could be reset
pending the results of Parsons’ competency.
In addition to murder charges in connection with Leland’s death, the two are
facing child abuse and neglect charges related to what police allege is the
abuse of Stack’s six other children.
Clark County Child Protective Services assisted with Metro’s investigation
and reported that officials had investigated Stack on two occasions within the
last year. Parsons wasn't involved with those previous cases.
Mann said today he believes at least some of the other children have been
placed with Stack’s sister.

A 29-year-old woman originally charged
with second-degree murder in the death of her 3-year-old son pleaded
guilty Tuesday to lesser charges.Elizabeth Stack took a deal
from prosecutors, pleading guilty to one count each of child abuse and
neglect and child abuse with substantial bodily harm, both felonies,
District Court records showed.
Prosecutors have retained the right to argue at a sentencing hearing scheduled for Oct. 5 before Judge Michelle Leavitt.Stack's
boyfriend, Jesse Parsons, also was charged with murder and multiple
counts of child abuse in the March death of Leland Garcia.Defense attorney Joel Mann said his client is devastated."No
matter what sentence she gets from the judge, she will never escape the
memory that she had something to do with her son's death. She's going
to have to live with that for the rest of her life," he said.Las
Vegas police said Parsons would discipline Leland by striking him with a
metal object or a wooden paddle. Police found the child unconscious,
with severe bruising on his head and body. He also suffered internal
injuries consistent with blunt-force trauma, police said.Stack was present for many of the attacks but did not stop them, authorities said.Mann
said Stack was abused by her ex-husband, Leland's father, and was "no
longer able to step in and stop" Parsons. The ex-husband was charged
with trying to kill Stack and was deported.Leland was one of seven siblings, some of whom also were abused. Parsons is not the father of any of the children.Leland's siblings were placed in protective custody after Stack and Parsons were arrested.According
to court records, the case against Parsons was put on hold after
physicians found he was incompetent to stand trial. Parsons was sent in
May to Lake's Crossing, Nevada's institution for offenders with mental
illness.