SAN ANTONIO – As the San Antonio Police Department and the Child Protective Services investigate the mother charged with capital murder for the deaths of her two children found in a burning car Friday, the public and welfare experts are wondering what led up to the tragedy.
On Monday, CPS confirmed the agency has been involved with the family of Marlene Vidal, 34. Vidal is accused of setting fire to the car, where the children were found just before 5 a.m. Friday behind a warehouse in the 500 block of Richland Hills Drive, near Potranco Road.
SAPD Assistant Chief Jesse Salame said that although the department has not listed a motive, mental health issues may have played a role. Salame said the children are believed to be 5 and 7 years old, but they have not yet been publicly identified.
The CPS spokesperson was unable to provide any further information Monday beyond the fact that a child fatality report will be released upon completion of the investigation.
Vidal is originally from Edinburg, Texas, in the Rio Grande Valley, but on Friday, TheTXLoop confirmed with relatives in San Antonio that Vidal had temporarily stayed with the family at times.
Vidal eventually made her way to San Antonio by Friday, and because the alleged crime happened in Bexar County, the local Child Protective Services office is the one investigating.
While Vidal does not have a past criminal history in Bexar County or Hidalgo County, TheTXLoop reached out to the Edinburg Police Department on Monday, who said it did come into contact with Vidal days before the children were found dead.
“The Edinburg Police Department is aware of the tragic case in San Antonio,” the department said. “Edinburg police officers made contact days prior with the subject involved in the case. At the time of the interaction, there was no basis to make an arrest or execute an emergency detention.”
Edinburg police gave no further details about what led to their interaction with Vidal.
On Monday, TheTXLoop found a record of a private lawsuit between Vidal and the father of her children, categorized under parent and child relationship.
The detailed documents were not immediately available, but a legal expert told TheTXLoop that these suits can involve issues such as custody, child support, supervised visitation, and other related matters.
While the details are not available, the fact that there was a civil legal record and some type of CPS history has led child welfare experts to express concern about why more action wasn’t taken last week before the tragedy.
“First, most officers are not well-trained to respond as mental health professionals, but also, their authority is somewhat limited in Texas because we don’t have any type of red flag law,” said attorney Joseph Hoelscher. “Officers can only attempt to start an emergency detention if they think someone is an imminent threat to themselves or others. So in a lot of cases where people are hesitant to talk about their mental health issues with law enforcement officers just don’t get that information.”
Vidal is being held in the Bexar County Adult Detention Center on two counts of capital murder and one count of arson. Vidal is being held on a $2.1 million bond — $1 million each for two capital murder charges and $100,000 for an arson charge, Bexar County court records show.
Anyone struggling with mental health can reach out to the National Alliance on Mental Illness HelpLine by calling 800-950-NAMI (6264), texting NAMI to 62640, emailing helpline@nami.org , or chatting online.
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