A Texas mom was charged with capital murder Monday after authorities accused her of stabbing, strangling and placing a bag over the head of her 5-year-old daughter at a park north of Houston, court records show.
Melissa Towne, 37, is alleged to have confessed to the killing after the girl was found wrapped in plastic and mesh bags in her Jeep Cherokee, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said in a statement.
The girl's neck appeared to have been cut, and it showed ligature, or stangulation, marks, he said.
Towne was being held in lieu of $15 million bond, jail records show.
The killing occurred Sunday at Spring Creek Park in Tomball, Gonzalez said. Towne is accused of driving the girl to a local hospital, where an emergency room nurse found her in the Jeep, NBC affiliate KPRC reported.
The girl was pronounced dead at the facility, Gonzalez said.
In a statement that allegedly confessed to the killing, Towne told authorities that she took the girl to some woods in the park and slit her throat, KPRC reported, citing a court hearing Monday.
When the girl didn't die, Towne allegedly strangled her for more than 30 minutes, the station reported.
"I’ve been good,” the girl responded, according to a prosecutor describing Towne's alleged confession during the hearing, KPRC reported.
"Stop fighting it," Towne allegedly replied, according to the station.
In a criminal complaint filed Monday, authorities also accused Towne of placing a bag over the girl's head and covering her mouth with her hand.
Towne allegedly called the girl "evil" and said she “didn’t want to deal with her anymore," KPRC reported.
In a statement, Child Protective Services said Towne has a "prior" history with the agency but declined to provide additional details, citing confidentiality rules, according to KPRC.
The statement said Towne has three other children ages 2 to 18 who are "safe and have been living with other family members."
It isn't clear whether Towne has a lawyer to speak on her behalf. Court records didn't list one.