A real friend is someone who you can come to in your time of need.
That's exactly what one teen whom we are calling 'Cristy' did for her friend after she was allegedly beaten by her parents with a leather belt for three hours.
"They started hitting her and hitting her and her little sister walked into the room and they were pretty mad and started hitting her too," 'Cristy' said.
She spoke exclusively to Action 4 News about the day she told her friend to get help.
'Cristy'' recalls the conversation she and her 15-year-old friend had after the alleged beating.
We're protecting her identity because of the severity of the crime and her age.
According to 'Cristy' this was not the first time the 15-year-old had visible bruises.
"It was not a typical bruise, it seemed something that must have been forced on for a long time," 'Cristy' said.
According to court documents, on January 10th, Mission Police were called out to a house on the 300 block of West 14th Street in Mission.
When police arrived they spoke to the 15-year-old teen who claimed, on January 8th her mother, Carlota, was mad at her and began yelling.
That's when Salinas allegedly grabbed a leather belt and started hitting the 15-year-old across the side and her lower back.
Reports state that the teen had large bruising to right buttock and upper right thigh.
The victim then stated that her father, Javier Salinas, took the belt from her mother and continued to hit her on and off untill about 11 pm.
Court documents state that Salinas, told the teen to wear a jacket to school the next day and to not tell anyone what happened.
The teen didn't listen, she sent out a text message to her friend, 'Cristy' knew it was a cry for help.
"That morning we were like maybe we shouldn't maybe we should just wait and see if she comes in tomorrow and then talk to her about it then we were like no what if something else happens and what if something more serious happens and she doesn't make it in tomorrow," 'Cristy' said.
'Cristy' took the message to her physics teacher and told him about the alleged beating.
He immediately took action and brought 'Cristy' and the victim to the counselor's office where Child Protective Service was called.
“Cristy' credits her mom for speaking up for her friend.
She said, her mother always taught her to speak up if she knew it would help someone get out of a bad situation.
"I will try to be there for everybody that I can. [Is there something that you want your friend to know?] That I love her," 'Cristy' said.
'Cristy' said she's relieved that her friend and sister will finally get the help they need.
The 15-year-old and 10-year-old were taken to a child advocacy center and are now in with grandparents.
Carlota Salinas is currently a supervisor to the principal at Clinton Elementary--part of the La Joya Independent School District.
The district tells Action 4 News Carlota is still employed with La Joya ISD.
La Joya ISD said that they haven't received notification from Mission Police of her status.
Her bond is set at $5,000.
Javier was charged with assault and injury to a child.
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