Milwaukee mom charged after teenage son weighing 42 lbs. dies

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- A 32-year-old Milwaukee woman is facing a felony charge of chronic neglect of a child after the medical examiner determined her 16-year-old son died from severe malnutrition.

The accused is Iraida Pizarro-Osorio.

According to the criminal complaint, Pizarro-Osorio, 32, brought her son to the Sixteenth Street Health Center on Sept. 4. He was “unresponsive, had a faint pulse, and appeared extremely emaciated,” the complaint says. Despite efforts by clinic personnel and Milwaukee first responders, the child died at the health center.

The complaint indicates the 16-year-old weighed just 42 pounds at the time of death — “placing (the child) in the zero percentile on the CDC's growth chart for boys ages 2-20.” A detective noted the boy's “skeletal structure was visible underneath the skin” and he was “lacking muscle.”

Pizarro-Osorio indicated to police the 16-year-old suffered from a genetic disorder, had seizures, epilepsy and autism. She said his condition impacted his ability to gain weight, the complaint says. Pizarro-Osorio told police the teenage “has never weighed more than 75-80 pounds in his lifetime.”

The complaint indicates police conducted an interview with an 18-year-old woman. She stated that in March 2019 “the defendant placed a lock on the outside of (the teen's) door to prevent (him) from leaving his room at night.”

Pizarro-Osorio made her initial appearance in court on Sunday, Sept. 8. Cash bond was set at $35,000. Pizarro-Osorio is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 18.