How Could You? Hall of Shame-Vivian Mae Mariscal case-Child Death and Lawsuit

This will be an archive of heinous actions by those involved in child welfare, foster care and adoption. We forewarn you that these are deeply disturbing stories that may involve sex abuse, murder, kidnapping and other horrendous actions.

From Tuscon, Arizona, foster child Vivian Mae Mariscal, 8 months old, “died in a bathtub on September [14,] 2025.”

“The biological parents of a baby who drowned in a Tucson foster home have filed a notice of claim against the Arizona Department of Child Safety and the licensed foster mom who cared for the child.”

““Vivian was left alone, unsupervised, in an unsafe situation,” said attorney Ken Ralston. He represents the girl’s biological parents, Ashley Manley and Angelo Mariscal.”

“The notice of claim, a precursor to a lawsuit, alleges wrongful death and negligence against DCS and the foster mother who was caring for Vivian Mae. The biological parents are asking for $5 million in damages.

“The goal is to get DCS’s attention,” Ralston said. “To make sure that they take the initiative to ensure that a child is in a safe, nourishing, loving environment where incidents like this can never happen.”

According to police records, the foster mother’s 17-year-old son called 911 on the night of the drowning.”

““We are having a problem with a child not breathing,” the teen told the dispatcher.

The foster mother, licensed by the Department of Child Safety, attempted CPR on the child but could not revive her.

ABC15 is not naming the foster mother, who has not been criminally charged, in part to protect the identity of minor children in her home.

Tucson Police officers arrived and started asking questions.”

“The foster mother told officers she left Vivian Mae and a 2-year-old daughter in the living room. She said she went to the bathroom in her own bedroom for a few minutes.

Police body cameras recorded their conversation:

Officer: Who put the daughter in the bathtub?

Foster Mom: She put herself in the bathtub.

Officer: The truth? She did?

Foster mom: Yeah, and then she took the baby and put the baby in the bathtub.

Officer: The two-year-old did?

Foster mom: Yeah.

The foster mother said she heard water running in the kids’ bathroom when she returned to the living room.

The recorded conversation continued:

Foster mom: I went directly to the bathroom. The baby was purple.

Officer: Did you turn the water on? Or did the toddler?

Foster Mom: The toddler.

But the woman’s 17-year-old son offered a conflicting account.

“My mom said, ‘Put the sisters in the bathtub,’ so I put them in the bathtub,” the teen told police on the night of the drowning.

The teen also worried about what would happen to his mom.

“I don’t want her to go to jail tonight,” the teen said.

Days later, in a follow-up interview, a Tucson Police detective expressed concern about changing stories.

“When things don’t line up and we’re getting different stories, then it makes it look like something’s off,” Detective Meghan Johnson told the foster mother.

“I have nothing to hide,” the foster mother replied. “I’m very sad, obviously, about the situation.”

Tucson Police said they made no arrests. Prosecutors reviewed the case and declined to file charges.

The medical examiner ruled the drowning was an accident.

DCS also opened a case. In a recorded interview obtained by ABC15, the DCS investigator expressed concern that neglect occurred.

“Either way, the girls were not supervised in the bathtub, and they should have been,” the DCS investigator said. “As tragic as it is — and I am so sorry for your loss — it’s still neglect,” the DCS investigator said on the recording.

“I’ve had multiple kids through my house. I’ve not had any issues,” the foster mother said in the interview.

“There’s nothing I could have done differently in that scenario, you know, I obviously have to go to the bathroom,” she added.

The outcome of the DCS investigation is unclear. Sometimes it takes more than a year for the agency to release a report about a child fatality. By law, the findings can’t be released publicly unless it is determined that a child died because of abuse, abandonment or neglect.

“Our hearts go out to the child’s loved ones and all those affected by this tragic event,” a DCS spokesperson told ABC15 in an email. “We are committed to fully understanding the circumstances surrounding this tragedy and are assisting law enforcement in their investigation.

“No matter how you slice the facts, one thing is clear: She was left alone without adult supervision in the bath in about six inches of water,” Ralston said.

The parents’ notice of claim alleges wrongful death and negligence, saying, “In Arizona, foster parents have a duty to provide safe care to a foster child, including monitoring children while in bathtubs.””

[Once again, what is the name of the foster mother? She seemed pretty nonchalant about her own foster child’s death!]

Questions arise after baby drowns in bathtub at Arizona foster home
[ABC 15 by 4/29/26 Melissa Blasius]

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