Mom could not remember the last time she fed her 2 kids, who were found dead: Cops

01 Oct 2026, 15:55 by Jamie Frevele · Law & Crime

Inset: Justine May (Charleston County Sheriff's Office). Background: News footage of the neighborhood where two dead bodies were found in Justine May's home (WCSC).

A South Carolina woman faces two counts of homicide by child abuse after police said they found her two daughters dead in her home while conducting a welfare check.

Justine May, 31, was arrested Tuesday and charged with two counts of homicide by child abuse. According to reporting by local CBS affiliate WCSC, police responded to a home in Ladson, South Carolina, on Tuesday afternoon and found two bodies inside. WCSC reported that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) Department of Child Fatalities was at the scene and is assisting in the investigation.

The ages and identities of the victims were confirmed on Thursday, when the Charleston County Coroner's Office said the victims were May's daughters, 2-year-old Emory Deacon and 1-year-old Harlow Deacon. Both girls died of starvation and dehydration due to neglect.

According to an affidavit obtained by local ABC affiliate WCIV and reviewed by Law&Crime, police arrived at May's home where they found her "crying and speaking incoherently." She allegedly told police that she "did not remember" the last time she fed her daughters, saying the past few weeks were a "blur."

Police said May was "aware that not feeding her children was neglectful."

When police entered the home and found Emory and Harlow, they were reportedly "obviously deceased" and beyond lifesaving measures.

WCIV reported that various agencies, including the Charleston County Sheriff's Office, the Department of Social Services, and the state Department of Mental Health's Mobile Crisis Unit, made contact with May 13 times since Aug. 10. After five visits to May's home during that time, the sheriff's office reported that there were no signs of concern.

Local news outlet The Post and Courier reported that May's social media presence in the weeks leading up to the discovery and her arrest indicated that her family had concerns about the welfare of her two daughters. According to The Post and Courier, May posted several screenshots on Facebook of messages from family members, and one told her the posts made her "look unhinged."

One relative reportedly sent May a lengthy email in September asking her if she had been following the Lindsay Clancy trial, referring to the Massachusetts mother who allegedly killed her three children with exercise bands. The relative also wrote, "This has been the fresh hell your family has been living every day that you don't communicate or let us see the girls."

May reportedly posted screenshots of texts with her ex-boyfriend, the father of her two children. In one text message, he reportedly told May, "This is not harassment. I am genuinely terrified for the kids," and "Are you going to hurt one of the kids to get back at me?"

In a Facebook post from Sept. 9, May reportedly wrote, "The police have been to my door so much the past month because of him calling them for welfare checks that they just had to yesterday call him and tell him to stop abusing the system. I had DSS at my door because he called them and, of course, they found absolutely nothing wrong because I am an amazing mom."

May reportedly responded to one family members messages in a Sept. 13 post on Facebook that read, "I am perfectly capable of deciding who is best for my children. And they are having the time of their life wit [sic] people who have always wanted to be around them wit me begging for it."

May waived her right to a bond hearing on Wednesday and remains in custody at the Sheriff Al Cannon Detention Center. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 20.

This story has been updated with new details.