Mom accused of running over 3-year-old is taken back into custody

Authorities confirm that a Texas woman accused of running over her 3-year-old son with her SUV while taking part in a “game of chicken” is now back in custody.

According to local station KHOU 11, Lexus Stagg was in tears during her first court appearance Monday morning. After prosecutors argued that her previous bond of $1,500 set by a magistrate judge was too low for the heinous crime she’s being charged with, the judge raised her bond to $25,000.

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Three weeks ago, surveillance video caught the 26-year-old her driving towards her three children and fatally running one of them over with her SUV. The incident took place in the family’s southwest Houston apartment complex parking lot, and Stagg was charged with criminally negligent homicide.

“The 3-year-old child ran behind her vehicle as she backed out of her parking spot,” HPD’s Lt. Thurston Roberson said at the time.

“She was in her car and her children were playing in front of her in the parking lot. She put her car into reverse, and drove at least 100 feet,” said Sean Teare, who is with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.

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“The three kids followed her, followed the car, at which point, the defendant put her car into drive and drove toward her children as they were running toward her. The two older children were able to get out of the way, and tragically, the younger child was not and was run over by two of her tires.”

“She truly played a ‘game of chicken’ with her 3-year-old, 5-year-old, and 2-year-old children,” continued Teare. “That’s not okay, even if no one had been hurt, that’s not okay, this is the definition of endangering children, and this one had the worst possible outcome.”

Following the judge’s ruling, the young mother was immediately taken back into police custody.

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