SAN ANTONIO – Two toddlers found bound, trapped and alone in a Southwest Side home on Jan. 9 are doing well and adjusting well in a foster home, their ad litem attorney told a judge during a children’s court hearing Wednesday.
Judge Charles Montemayor presided over the hearing about the current status of the children as well as their history.
According to Child Protective Services, the children were originally taken from their biological mother and the father of one of the children after the children were found with unexplained fractures.
The children were placed in the care of Priscilla Salais, the biological mother’s stepmother, after she passed a home study done by CPS.
CPS also stated that everything seemed fine during the home visit they conducted on Dec. 29, 2021, saying Salais was meeting the children’s basic needs.
But just 11 days later, the two toddlers were found alone. According to the arrest affidavit, the toddler girl was found tied by her wrists and ankles with visible injuries and the toddler boy was found encaged in a playpen.
Salais was arrested and charged with two counts of endangering a child. Salais posted bond on Tuesday and has since been released from jail. Her first court hearing won’t take place until she is indicted.
“All adults, parents, caregivers, and the system failed these children,” Montemayor told everyone involved in this case. “These children have been through a lot and it’s not going to continue.”
Montemayor ordered that the children begin trauma-based therapy and for child advocates to get involved.
The ad litem attorney said a new CPS caseworker would be assigned to the case starting Feb. 1.