http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news...cted-6-24-2010

Surprise Mom Indicted for Punching Son
Woman told police she didn't want her kids anymore

Updated: Thursday, 24 Jun 2010, 4:35 PM MDT
Published : Thursday, 24 Jun 2010, 4:35 PM MDT

by JULIE ROSE

SURPRISE - A Surprise mother arrested after allegedly punching her 11-year-old son in the stomach has been indicted for child abuse.

29-year-old Christina Jean Muniz was indicted Thursday on one count of child abuse and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Police officers and child welfare workers saw Muniz punch her eldest son with a closed fist when he tried to hug her goodbye.

In an exclusive jailhouse interview with FOX 10, Muniz said, "That is a lie... I pointed my finger in his face and I told him how I felt.... I think I just pushed him away."

Back on June 11, the 11-year-old boy called police to say his mother was packing and moving to California and not taking him with her.

According to the audio from the 911 call, the anguished boy told the operator: "My mom keeps on screaming, she said that she's going to go to California and leave us alone by ourselves for a long time!"

911 operator: "Why is she saying that?"

Boy: "I don't know she says she doesn't want to be around us.... she said she was going to be beat me up because I didn't want her to go."

When officers arrived, Christina Muniz allegedly told them she did not want her two kids anymore and that they should do something with them. They decided to call in CPS, and Muniz continued to use expletives and be verbally abusive to the children in their presence.

Police say she was drinking during the visit. Muniz later told FOX 10 she suffers from alcoholism and bipolar disorder. "I've always had problems too with my chemical imbalance, sometimes I'm not thinking rationally either," she said.

As CPS prepared to remove the children, the 11-year-old tried to say goodbye to his mother and was met with a punch to the stomach, according to the report.

A glass pipe used for smoking marijuana was found in the bedroom.

Muniz will be arraigned on June 28. She is being held on a $20,000 bond.