A 35-year-old mother in Utah has been sentenced to life behind bars for abusing, torturing, and killing her six-year-old son over potty-training struggles.
On Tuesday, Third District Judge Douglas Hogan ordered Reyna Elizabeth Flores-Rosales to serve five years to life in state prison for the 2019 murder of Norlin Cruz, 6, after a Salt Lake County jury convicted her on one count of reckless child abuse homicide, a first-degree felony.
Additionally, the judge sentenced Flores-Rosales to one to 15 years each on two counts of second-degree intentional child abuse and zero to five years for third-degree reckless aggravated child abuse.
Flores-Rosales called 911 on February 25, 2019, and told the emergency dispatcher that her six-year-old son needed immediate medical attention after she found him unresponsive on the shower floor. When firefighters and police responded to the scene, they reportedly found the child without a pulse and immediately transported him to the hospital.
Medical personnel told investigators that while examining Norlin, they found that the child had also suffered “multiple injuries and scars” that included burns, deep cuts, broken bones, and other wounds all over his body.
Due to the severity of his condition, Norlin was transported to Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital for more specialized treatment.
Unfortunately, the boy succumbed to his injuries after arriving at the hospital and was pronounced dead. Doctors said the child had sustained severe head trauma with “no accidental explanation.”
Prosecutors also revealed that Norlin was starving when he died but that his mother had locked the refrigerator with a bike lock to prevent him from eating. They also noted that Flores-Rosales made doctor appointments for herself and her younger child but never got medical care for Norlin. The court learned that Flores-Rosales had been abusing Norlin for years before his death.
The judge said he would write to the Utah Board of Pardons to ensure Flores-Rosales never leaves prison for the horrific abuse she had inflicted on the child.