caption resting_place death_date death_place birth_place nationality ethnicity name parents birth_date image article_title birth_name death_cause
elisa izquierdo in 1995 cypress hills cemetery , brooklyn , new york 22 november 1995 manhattan usa , new york city , new york , brooklyn usa , new york city , new york , puerto rican-cuban-american cuban american , puerto rican american elisa izquierdo gustavo -rrb- izquierdo -lrb- father -rrb- awilda lopez -lrb- mother 11 february 1989 file : elisa izquierdo november 1995.png murder of elisa izquierdo
 elisa izquierdo brain hemorrhage , multiple trauma , child abuse
murder of elisa izquierdo

elisa izquierdo -lrb- february 11 , 1989 -- november 22 , 1995 -rrb- was a six-year-old puerto rican -- cuban-american girl who was beaten to death by her mother awilda lopez , a new york city drug addict , in 1995 .
described by authorities in new york as the `` worst case of child abuse they had ever seen , '' the life and death of elisa izquierdo first made city and then national headlines when it became clear that new york city 's child welfare system -lrb- now the administration for children 's services -rrb- missed numerous opportunities to intervene with her family and to save her life .
these failures to protect elisa subsequently became the inspiration for elisa 's law , a major restructuring of the new york child welfare increasing accountability of parties involved in child welfare and reducing areas of confidentiality relating to public disclosure in cases of this nature .
elisa 's law was implemented in february , 1996 .
her life story became the subject numerous media articles , from local tabloids such as the `` new york daily news '' and `` the new york post '' to the cover of `` time magazine '' .
her story was featured on an august 1996 episode of `` dateline nbc '' .
elisa was once referred to as a modern-day cinderella because she had been under the protection of a loving father and had befriended prince michael of greece through her school before being placed into the custody of her mother .
