A Chicago mother who told police her 3-year-old daughter was killed in a weekend home invasion was ordered held without bail during a Wednesday court appearance.
Maria Espinoza-Perez, 24, of the 3300 block of North Natchez Avenue, faces charges of first-degree murder.
Officers were called to the home on Sunday night. They found the toddler, Ashley Mendoza, with trauma to her head and body, according to police and the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Prosecutors allege that Epinoza-Perez was responsible for the girls's injuries. Following an autopsy, the medical examiner's office determined the girl died of multiple injuries stemming from child abuse.
Karen Hawkins, a spokeswoman for Illinois' Department of Children and Family Services, said the agency had no previous reports on the family and said there were not other children in the home.
