A 30-year-old woman has been arrested after her 3-year-old daughter was discovered in the back yard of a Highgrove home.
The victim was identified by family members as 3-year-old Zayla Rank. Her mother, Susan Rank, was booked for murder after investigators determined she was responsible for the death of her daughter, according to a news release..
Family members told ABC 7 that Susan Rank has suffered from a brain tumor and mental illness her entire life and that she and her mother, Tracylyn Sharrit, had been living in a sober living home.
“I wanted to let people know that mental illness killed this child,” Sharrit told the Press Enterprise.
“She was a child, she was a beautiful little girl,” Sharrit continued. “Zayla is collateral damage because of this. She’s collateral damage of mental illness.”
Police were called to the home Friday morning about 6:45 am and discovered the girl’s body outside. Everyone in the home was detained and authorities say they are not looking for additional suspects.
When asked by the Press Enterprise if mental illness was a factor in the death, Sheriff’s Deputy Mike Vasquez responded, “We’re looking into the possibility of those things. We never are going to rule one of those out, or that out, but we really haven’t established that at this point.”
