A New Mexico mom forced her kids to smoke cigarettes until they puked and pepper sprayed them as punishments, leading to her arrest this week, police alleged.
Yvonne Legardy, 40, was taken into custody twice since Monday – both times on charges of child abuse, according to police records, KFOX-TV reported.
Legardy allegedly beat one of her sons with a mop handle in late May because he failed to clean the family's Las Cruces, New Mexico, backyard "properly," leading to her initial arrest this week, according to police.
The victim allegedly had several visible six-inch long welts to corroborate his claims.
Legardy told police she was confronting her son over "contraband" found in the home when he ran to a local library to call for help.
During the course of the investigation, police alleged Legardy discovered a vape in the family home. Unsure of who it belonged to, she allegedly forced both her teen sons to smoke cigarettes until they threw up. She allegedly then pepper sprayed them because she was upset they vomited, prompting police to issue a second arrest warrant Thursday.
The mother has been arrested on nearly 30 counts of child abuse since 2013, the outlet reported, citing arrest records.
The victims' stepfather, Lerenzo Andre Legardy, 52, was arrested earlier this year, on two counts of child abuse after he was accused of whipping the boys with an extension cord.
It's unclear if either parent has entered a plea to the charges.
Authorities said the couple "feed off each other" in connection with the alleged ongoing abuse.
