16-year-old with autism dies weighing 42 pounds, Wisconsin cops say. Mom is charged

A mother in Wisconsin has been charged after her 16-year-old son died weighing only 42 pounds, police say.

Iraida Pizarro-Osorio’s 16-year-old son had only a “faint pulse” when she took him to a Milwaukee hospital last week, court documents say, according to WISN. Pizarro-Osorio, 32, had found the teen — who she says had epilepsy and autism — in his bedroom unresponsive with “blood coming out of his mouth,” TMJ4 reported.

Attempts to save boy’s life failed and he died at the hospital, WITI reported. When police arrived, they said they could see the boy’s bones protruding from under his skin, citing an absence of muscle and fatty tissue. He weighed only 42 pounds, WISN reported.

Pizarro-Oscorio said a change in her son’s eating habits had caused him to lose 15 pounds, but that she waited to take him to the hospital because she was afraid child protective services would be called, TMJ4 reported.

Pizarro-Oscorio reportedly had a history with the Bureau of Child Welfare. In 2017, the bureau was called after her son had suffered a seizure, the news outlet reported.

Someone from the bureau checked in with the family twice a week for six months due to the teen’s alleged malnutrition. The visits stopped once the teen’s weight reached 68-70 pounds, up from his previous weight of 60 pounds, TMJ4 reported.

After her son’s death, Pizarro-Oscorio told police she’d taken her son to Puerto Rico to seek treatment, though she says the trip was unsuccessful because she didn’t have insurance, WITI reported.

An 18-year-old woman — who some reports have identified as Pizzaro-Oscorio’s daughter — refuted that claim in an interview, stating that Pizzaro-Oscorio never took the teen to Puerto Rico, WITI reported.

The woman also told police that Pizarro-Oscorio put a lock on the boy’s door back in March so he couldn’t get out of his room at night — something Pizarro-Oscorio admitted to, adding that she would open it up once he’d gone to sleep so she could hear if he was having a seizure, WITI reported. Pizarro-Oscorio ultimately admitted that she had not taken the boy to Puerto Rico.

Pizarro-Oscorio was arrested and charged with chronic child neglect resulting in great bodily harm, WISN reported. She’s being held in Milwaukee County Jail and cash bail is set at $35,000. If convicted, she could face up to 25 years in prison, according to the news outlet.

This story was originally published September 10, 2019 at 8:44 AM with the headline "16-year-old with autism dies weighing 42 pounds, Wisconsin cops say. Mom is charged."