From Sandi Gibbons at the DA’s office:

POMONA – Twin sisters pleaded no contest today to elder abuse resulting in the death of their invalid mother and were immediately sentenced to state prison by a Superior Court commissioner in Pomona.

Deputy District Attorney Robin E. Allen of the Elder Abuse Section said Commissioner Wade Olsen sent each sister to prison for three years.

Justine Naomi Rosales and her sister, Jasmine Nicole, each was charged a year ago with one count of elder or dependent abuse resulting in death (Section 368(b)(1) of the California Penal Code). The case was filed after a lengthy investigation of the Feb. 27, 2007, death of 43-year-old Naomi Mendez, the twins’ mother.

Authorities said the victim was found dead at the family’s Covina home. The woman, who weighed 78 pounds at the time of her death, suffered from diabetes and other medical problems that limited her speech and required her to us a walker.

The defendants have remained in custody on $80,000 bail each since their arrests on April 22, 2009, by detectives with the Covina Police Department. The case against them was filed two days later.