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Amanda Morgan appears in court on April 20 (WKRG).
An Alabama mother, Amanda Morgan, has been charged with murder following the tragic death of her teenage son and made a court appearance in Mobile County.
The 39-year-old mother chose to waive her preliminary hearing rights on Monday. Morgan faces charges of felony murder and aggravated child abuse after authorities discovered her two autistic teenage children left alone at home. Her 14-year-old son was found deceased from strangulation in October 2025.
Mobile County District Attorney Keith Blackwood addressed the media outside the courtroom, shedding light on the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death.
According to a report by Law&Crime, the teenager died from strangulation, with a blanket wrapped around his neck. Blackwood informed WKRG, a local CBS affiliate, that the boy had used the blanket as a makeshift cape, describing it as a “comfort mechanism” for him. Although Blackwood characterized the incident as an accidental strangulation, he emphasized, “There was a prolonged period of alleged neglect that contributed to this tragic situation.”
Blackwood clarified to WKRG, “We’re not alleging that Amanda Morgan physically killed her child.”
Morgan is, however, accused of leaving her two children with severe autism home alone for long periods of time. When the boy was found dead on Oct. 8, 2025, witnesses told police that Morgan allegedly left her two teenagers home alone overnight. During a court hearing in March after Morgan was arrested, a witness testified that Morgan would leave the teenagers home by themselves for “extended periods of time.”
Morgan’s 16-year-old daughter was treated at the hospital for severe malnutrition. After her arrest, Morgan was ordered not to have any contact with her surviving child. Police said Morgan’s home in Theodore, Alabama, was infested with insects and human waste. The home reportedly had no running water or air conditioning.
WKRG reported that Morgan waived her right to a preliminary hearing, and now the case heads to a grand jury that will decide whether or not to indict her for murder and aggravated child abuse. Morgan remains in custody at the Mobile County Jail, where she is being held on $20,000 bond. Her next court date was not immediately available.