Mother suspected of child abuse after sons are found malnourished

A Murrieta mother was arrested Wednesday after police discovered her 3-year-old twin boys were starving and weighed only 15 pounds.

Courtney Lynn Stewart, 24, was taken into custody on suspicion of child abuse and endangerment, according to the Murrieta Police Department.

Police began investigating Stewart on Nov. 7, when they responded to Rancho Springs Hospital, where one of the boys had been taken.

The boy had several suspicious bruises on his body and suffered from severe malnutrition, police said.

He weighed less than 15 pounds.

The boy’s condition was critical. He was transferred to Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego for intensive care. Police said the boy remains hospitalized.

Soon after, investigators went to Stewart’s home and found her other son, who was also malnourished.

A hospital examination later revealed that he had a fractured jaw and suffered from neglect.

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