Texas cheerleader, 12, dies after 'mom and stepdad treated life-threatening injuries with smoothies'

A 12-year-old girl died after her mom and step-dad reportedly treated he life-threatening injuries with smoothies and vitamins, police say.

Miranda Sipps had been suffering from mystery symptoms that had gotten so bad the young girl could only "flutter her eyelids and mover her hands a little bit over a four day period", police say. Miranda had reportedly received the injuries on August 8 - but was kept at home where her mom Denise Balbaneda, 36, and stepfather, Gerald Gonzales, 40, attempted to treat her with smoothies and vitamin supplements.

Atascosa County Sheriff David Soward said during a news conference on Wednesday that the girl’s parents did not call 911 or seek medical help for the clearly sick child but allowed her lay on the floor suffering. Soward said: "Basically they thought they could nurse her back to health and we do not think they wanted the attention that this would draw if the little girl was injured,” the sheriff said. “Which is strangely ironic, but that was their line of thinking."

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Police say a 911 call was finally made on August 12 when someone at the family’s home called 911, however Miranda mother reportedly left the home with her before eventually instructed to stop her car to allow EMS to take her to the hospital.

Soward said the mother is suspected of leaving the home because they didn’t want law enforcement at the house. Medical staff “vigorously” treated the pre-teen but there was nothing they could do, the sheriff’s office added. She was pronounced dead at 9:55 p.m. local time.

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Soward said: “Our information is they didn’t want law enforcement at the house so she left with the child."

Balbaneda, 36, and stepfather, Gonzales are both been charged with injury to a child causing serious bodily injury by omission and are being held on a $200,000 bond.