California Mother Accused of Using ‘Strangulation and Sharp Force’ to Kill Her 4-Year-Old Daughter

A California woman has been arrested in connection with the death of her 4-year-old daughter.

On the evening of Jan. 25, deputies with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department responded to a business parking lot in East Los Angeles, KFSN reported.

At the scene, officers located the child, identified as Mia Gonzalez, unresponsive inside a vehicle.

• The young girl was transported to a local hospital, where she was later pronounced dead, according to authorities.

Officers also found the child’s mother, 38-year-old Maria Avalos, inside the vehicle.

Avalos was detained at the scene and later booked on suspicion of murder, officials said.

An autopsy completed on the victim ruled the child’s death a homicide.

According to the autopsy report, the girl's cause of death was from the “combined effects of strangulation and sharp force.”

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Officials said the case will be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for review on Jan. 30.

The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact LASD’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500.