ST. GEORGE, Utah, July 31, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — A St. George woman was booked into jail Tuesday on suspicion of child abuse after police say she admitted to breaking the bones of her young stepsons.
Nancy Pena, 34, was booked into the Washington County Jail on four counts of child abuse — inflicting serious injury recklessly, a third-degree felony.
Pena’s stepsons were ages 2 and 4, a probable cause statement says. St. George Police were notified by the Division of Child and Family Services after the boys were taken to Dixie Regional Medical Center on separate occasions.
The 4-year-old was found to have a broken scapula (shoulder blade), a broken humerus (upper arm), and a broken bone in his pelvic area. The 2-year-old had a broken femur (thigh).
Pena and the boy’s father were interviewed separately on multiple occasions, the probable cause statement says. Pena was interviewed again on Tuesday.
“During the interview, Nancy admitted to and provided details about being the one who broke the 2-year-old child’s femur,” the statement says. “She said the injury occurred when she lost her temper while changing the child’s diaper.
“Nancy also admitted to and provided details of being the one responsible for breaking the 4-year-old child’s humerus bone. Nancy described grabbing the child’s arms, raising them above his head, and then escorting him to his room. Nancy admitted to losing her temper, during those incidents, but denied causing the injuries intentionally.”
Pena denied causing the injuries to the 4-year-old’s scapula and pelvic areas.
“Nancy admitted to being responsible for breaking two of the four broken bones found on the children. She informed detectives she hadn’t told her husband about what she had done and maintained he had nothing to do with the injuries to his boys.
“Due to her confessing to two of the incidents, as well her inconsistent statements during her multiple interviews, detectives concluded it was reasonable to believe Nancy was responsible for the boys’ injuries in question.”
The statement also noted that the boys’ injuries occurred while Pena was on parole or probation for an unrelated crime. Her bail has been set at $10,000.
