A South Carolina mother told investigators she could not recall the last time she had given her two young daughters food or anything to drink before deputies found both children dead inside their Ladson home, according to affidavits reviewed by News Media.
Justine Marie May, 31, is charged with two counts of homicide by child abuse in connection with the Sept. 29 deaths of her daughters at the family’s home in Ladson, a community outside Charleston, court records show.
Charleston County Sheriff’s Office deputies conducting a welfare check allegedly found May outside the residence crying and “speaking incoherently,” according to the affidavits.
Justine Marie May, 31, faces two counts of homicide by child abuse following the deaths of her two young daughters in Ladson, S.C. (Charleston County Sheriff’s Office)
Deputies went inside to check on the children and discovered that both were dead, the documents state.
May told detectives that the preceding two weeks had passed in a “blur” and that she could not remember when she had last fed her daughters or given them something to drink, according to the affidavits.
She allegedly said she believed the children died because they had not eaten and acknowledged that failing to feed them was neglectful, the documents state. May also told investigators she had been the only person in the home and the girls’ sole caregiver for several weeks.
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office of Professional Standards in South Carolina is conducting an internal review of the agency’s response. (Google Maps)
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The affidavits identified the children as approximately 1½ and 2½ years old when they died.
Investigators alleged that May displayed “extreme indifference for human life” by failing to provide the children with basic nourishment and hydration, which they described as a “main contributor to their death.”
Authorities issued a separate arrest warrant for each child, charging May with homicide by child abuse under South Carolina law.
A stock image shows police emergency lights. The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the deaths of two young girls whose mother, Justine Marie May, faces two homicide by child abuse charges. (iStock)
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office said deputies had separate contact with May and the children twice in August and three times in September. During those encounters, deputies reported seeing no obvious signs of concern, according to published reports.
The last reported visit before the children’s deaths took place Sept. 20.
The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office of Professional Standards is reviewing the agency’s response. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division’s Special Victims Unit and the Department of Child Fatalities are also assisting with the investigation, according to published reports.
May was booked into the Charleston County jail on Sept. 29 and was still in custody as of Friday, according to online jail records reviewed by News Media. The records list two charges of homicide by child abuse.
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