Mother to Face Child Endangerment Charges

NORTH HILLS — A 25-year-old mother of three arrested on suspicion of felony child endangerment is scheduled for arraignment today in San Fernando Municipal Court, according to police.

The woman, identified as Maria Nieto, is expected to be charged with three counts of felony child endangerment, each of which carries a maximum penalty of six years in state prison, said Det. Gary Barthelmess of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Devonshire Division.

Nieto was arrested Sunday when she returned to her garbage-cluttered apartment in the 15100 block of Parthenia Street after a neighbor reported her to police.

Police said they found the kitchen covered in a blanket of bugs and nearly the entire apartment floor was covered with half-eaten food and soiled underwear.

The children, girls aged 2 and 5, and a boy, 4, remain in the custody of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, according to department spokesman Schuyler Sprowles.

Sprowles added that the children are together in immediate protective custody in Altadena and will remain there until a dependency court hearing, which will be scheduled later this week.

The hearing will determine whether the children return to their mother or remain in foster care.

“The unfortunate thing is that this type of incident is not all that uncommon,” Sprowles said.

He said this incident is categorized as one of general neglect, where poor sanitary conditions exist posing potential risks to children.

Family Services receives 3,500 general neglect calls a month, he said.