Girl, 7, drowned by mother in Southern California home, investigators say

A 37-year-old woman has been charged with murder in the drowning death of her 7-year-old daughter in Van Nuys earlier this month, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.  

The horrific incident unfolded on April 11 in the 6800 block of Sepulveda Boulevard.  

Officers with the Los Angeles Police Department responded to the location shortly after 5 p.m. on reports of an unresponsive child who was not breathing.  

The 7-year-old girl, whose name has not been released, was found in the bathtub and declared deceased at the scene.  

A neighbor told KTLA that the girl lived in the second-story apartment with her mother, now identified as Graciela Castellanos, and a man, adding that it was the man who found child’s lifeless body when he arrived home and began screaming for help.  

The man’s relationship to the young girl and Castellano is currently unknown.  

Footage of the scene showed the 37-year-old woman, who appeared to be suffering from laceration injuries, being taken into custody in a wheelchair, her wrists restrained to the chair’s arms.  

“The alleged facts of this case – where a mother is accused of intentionally taking the life of her young child – are profoundly tragic and deeply unsettling,” L.A. County DA Nathan Hochman said.  

The DA’s office charged Castellanos, who pleaded not guilty at a Tuesday hearing, with a felony count of murder and a felony count of assault on a child under eight causing death. She is being held on $2 million bail.  

“Our sympathy goes out to the family and loved ones of this young girl, whose life was cut short far too soon,” Hochman added.  

If convicted as charged, the 37-year-old woman faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison.  

She is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on June 17. 

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