Texas Sheriff Says Half-Ton Murder Suspect is Too Obese for Jail

Investigators in Hidalgo County, Texas, have a hefty problem on their hands. More precisely, they are trying to figure out how to incarcerate a 1000-pound woman, who, they say, murdered her nephew last spring.

The case in question dates back to March 18, 2008, when 2-year-old Eliseo Gonzalez, Jr., died while in the custody of his aunt, 27-year-old Mayra Lizbeth Rosales. At the time of the incident, Rosales told police that Eliseo's death was an accident. She said the youngster had fallen off a chair and that, when she reached down to pick him up, she slipped and her right hand landed on the top of his head, killing him. However, a post-mortem examination later revealed that Eliseo had suffered skull crushing injuries that were "consistent with blunt force trauma." The coroner also felt that Rosales' statements were inconsistent with the child's injuries.

After reviewing the coroner's findings, a grand jury last Thursday indicted Rosales on one count of first-degree murder and one count of injury to a child. An arrest warrant was drawn up; however, deputies from the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office were unable to take Rosales into custody.

According to Sheriff Lupe Trevino, Rosales could not be removed from the bedroom of her house because she would not fit through the doorway. In addition, Trevino said the county jail was not equipped to care for anyone who weighed over 500 pounds. As a result, Rosales was booked and finger- printed at home in her bed and was released on a personal recognizance bond.

The grand jury also indicted Rosales' 20-year-old sister, Jamie Lee Rosales, Eliseo's mother, on one felony count of injury to a child. According to prosecutors, Child Protective Services had warned Jamie Rosales not to leave her children in her sister's care because she was incapable of caring for them.

During the last five years, CPS has investigated five allegations of abuse and neglect against the Rosales family, but was allegedly only able to substantiate one of those claims.

Meanwhile, officials are trying to determine what to do with Mayra Rosales.

"We're struggling to find a place where she can be kept under lock and key," Rene Guerra, the Hidalgo County district attorney, told Themonitor.com. "We have to wait and see what the judge decides."

Sheriff Trevino estimates that it could cost tax payers about $5,000 dollars a day to incarcerate Rosales.

"The cost may be astronomical," Trevino said, adding, "but you can't put a price on justice.

Photo Credit: Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office