Second Girl Near Death in Killer Mom Case

Members of the neighborhood are led in prayer from Pastor Joyce Williams, second from left, at the site of a drowning Wednesday Feb. 15, 2012 in Los Angeles. A Los Angeles mother has been detained after the drowning death of a 1-year-old girl and the critical injury of a 5-year-old girl. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

A week after her mother pushed her and her 1-year-old sister into a tub, a 5-year-old girl in California is being taken off life support.

Authorities say Marian Valle will remain hospitalized until her organs can be harvested, which would take about 48 hours. Her sister died last week after their mother apparently snapped and tried to drown her daughters in a tub.

Marian’s father, Jose Humberto Lopez, said Monday she will remain on life support for up to 48 hours until her heart, liver, lungs and kidneys can be removed, according to an email Tuesday from Luis Carrillo, the attorney representing the family.

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There were reports that the girl had died but representatives Tuesday morning said that, according to detectives, she remained on life support.

Lopez told police that last Wednesday that he stepped out to the grocery store and when he returned he found his wife trying to drown the girls in a tub. Firefighters answering a 911 call found the girls unconscious and not breathing in a converted garage behind a main house.

Neighbors in the mostly Latino neighborhood in South Los Angeles said they were startled by a high- pitched scream coming from the home. “My babies! My babies!” neighbors heard the father shouting, according to the Los Angeles Times.

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Lorna Valle, 32, is charged with attempted murder of the 5-year-old and with the murder of her 1-year-old sister, Lindsay. Valle, who moved to the US from Guatemala a decade ago, was being held on $1.5 million bail and will face a second count of murder when the 5-year-old's death is confirmed, police Officer Karen Rayner said.

If convicted, Valle faces 50 years to life in prison.

Based on reporting by The Associated Press.