Ashley Pardo has been contending with charges ever since a relative found ammunition and homemade explosives in his room, records say.
SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio mother accused of buying her teenage son tactical gear and ammunition as he allegedly planned an attack against a middle school faces a new charge from an incident two years prior.
Ashley Pardo, 33, is already accused of aiding in the commission of terrorism related to her son’s plot, which law enforcement found out about this spring when a relative he was staying with reported strange behavior.
While executing a search warrant on her phone, an investigator with the San Antonio Police Department discovered images from the afternoon of March 3, 2023, showing Pardo pointing a shotgun at a then-11-month-old baby girl, according to an arrest affidavit. She then texted the photo to the girl’s biological father, telling him “the victim was being a brat.”
According to the affidavit, the baby is seen in the photo “kneeling on a bed on top of multiple blankets with a hand outstretched reaching towards a black shotgun the Defendant is holding, pointing at the victim’s head.” Pardo is recognized through the “multiple distinctive tattoos” on the arm seen in the image, records state, and her finger appeared to be on the trigger guard.
The arrest of Pardo and her son on May 12 was the culmination of monthslong investigation into threats made by the teen, a student at Rhodes Middle School on the city’s inner west side. Authorities said he had “a fascination with past mass shooters,” and was later allegedly found to have ammunition, a makeshift explosive and a note referencing mass shooting incidents.
Pardo is accused of giving or buying her son some of those items, including the ammunition, tactical gear and “various army clothing.”
Chief McManus said that an SAPD detective first contacted the boy in January over “concerning drawings” of Rhodes Middle School, including a map labeled “suicide route.” The student reportedly wrote out the name of the school with a muzzle flash drawn above it along with time stamps.
Police say they continuously met with family and the child offering help and resources. Meanwhile, Pardo was made aware of her son’s threats and had been in contact with police, CPS and school personnel. Chief McManus said that she “expressed to the school her support” of her son’s “violent expressions and drawings,” and wasn’t concerned by them.
Her son was ultimately arrested outside Rhodes, while wearing tactical gear, according to his defense attorney. A judge ruled he is to remain in custody while Pardo’s bond conditions were amended so she could return to work following her release May 13; but she’s still not allowed to see her son or contact any schools.
Pardo was rearrested Friday and assigned a new $45,000 bond. She faces a charge of child endangerment-criminal negligence after the photos were discovered.