Modesto Grandmother Arrested For Child Endangerment After Toddler Shot
MODESTO (CBS13) – The grandmother of a toddler who was shot over the weekend in Modesto has been arrested for felony child endangerment.
Police believe the grandmother knows who the shooter is but will not tell police.
The grandmother, Maria Hernandez, told police the toddler was shot during a drive-by in front of their home Sunday, but police say that's not what happened and suspect relatives are hiding the truth.
"The family is uncooperative we did arrest the grandmother," Modesto police Lt. Rick Armendariz said Monday.
The grandmother was watching the 18-month-old girl when the tot somehow took a bullet to her body. She was arrested after conflicting statements by the family and failing to explain to police how the child sustained the injury, police said.
Police believe Hernandez and other family members are lying about how the toddler ended up with a gunshot wound.
"Our focus right now is finding out what the truth is," Armendariz said. "They are protecting someone and we don't understand why."
With the young child's mother at work, the grandmother drove her to a hospital about six miles away from the home. According to police, she had surgery and they've been told she's expected to survive.
Police searched in and around the family home on Stone Leaf Court and said there was no drive-by shooting as the family originally reported.
But detectives haven't been able to find the crime scene and how and why the tot was shot.
"The information that the family is giving us does not indicate this was an accidental shooting," Armendariz said.
