ST. JOHN PARISH, La. (TCD) — Officials arrested a couple this week in connection with the death of their 4-month-old daughter and the abuse of their 13-month-old son.
On Tuesday, Aug. 1, at approximately 9 a.m., the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office said officers responded to a report of an unresponsive infant in the 100 block of Northwest 18th Street. Inside the home, officers and emergency medical services found the 4-month-old baby in a bed with no detectable vital signs. The coroner pronounced her dead at the scene.
The home was reportedly in “deplorable condition,” and investigators found another child in the home, a 13-month-old boy, who allegedly showed signs of neglect and abuse.
The Sheriff’s Office interviewed the victims’ parents, 24-year-old Angel Taylor and 31-year-old Chevy Lafountain, and determined their “statements were inconsistent with the infant’s physical state.”
Officials also noted that the parents were not remorseful “for their actions that led to their daughter’s death and their son’s current physical condition and their living conditions.”
According to the Sheriff’s Office, on Aug. 2, preliminary results from an autopsy showed that the baby girl suffered from starvation, malnutrition, dehydration, severe neglect, and child abuse.
Deputies arrested Taylor and Lafountain on charges of neglect, child abuse, and second-degree murder. They also face charges of desertion and cruelty to juveniles with force/violence in connection with the neglect and abuse of their 13-month-old son.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Judge Nghana Lewis set their bond at $600,000 each.
The state has taken custody of their surviving child.
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