Full Breakdown
South Carolina Mother Charged with Homicide by Child Abuse After Two Toddlers Found Dead
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
On September 29, 2026, deputies from the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office responded to a welfare check at 3200 block Pinewood Drive in Ladson, South Carolina. Inside the home, they discovered two children—identified by family members as girls named Emory and Harlow, both under age 3—deceased. The mother, 31-year-old Justine Marie May, was taken into custody and later charged with two counts of homicide by child abuse, a crime that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years up to life imprisonment.
Background & Context
Family members reported that they had repeatedly sought assistance for May and the girls in the weeks before the deaths, contacting the South Carolina Department of Social Services, requesting welfare checks, and reaching out to a mobile-crisis unit. Relatives said May’s behavior had changed dramatically 45–60 days prior to the incident, prompting the family to alert authorities. The case emerges amid a series of high-profile prosecutions of mothers accused of killing young children, including Lindsay Clancy in Massachusetts (2023) and Corie Walsh in Illinois (September 1, 2026). Those cases have intensified public debate over mental-health issues and child-welfare interventions.
Data & Statistics
- The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division’s Special Victims Unit Department of Child Fatalities investigated 328 child fatalities in 2024, opening 326 cases and 25 allegations of child abuse or neglect.
- Homicide by child abuse under South Carolina Code § 16-3-85 mandates a sentence of 20 years to life for a direct offense.
Official Statements & Responses
Charleston County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Alexis Douglas confirmed that deputies were familiar with the residence because of prior welfare-check calls, and that May was found outside the home crying and speaking incoherently before officers entered. The department’s Special Victims Unit is assisting the investigation.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
The probable-cause affidavit indicates May told investigators she had been in a “blur” for two weeks and could not recall the last time she fed the children, suggesting neglect contributed to the deaths. However, the affidavit does not reference autopsy findings or an official medical determination of cause of death, and the Charleston County Coroner’s Office has not released the victims’ ages, identities, or cause of death. Details about the frequency, timing, and outcomes of the earlier welfare checks remain undisclosed.
Timeline
- September 29, 2026 – Deputies conduct welfare check; two children found dead; May taken into custody.
- September 30, 2026 – May waives bond hearing; scheduled press conference announced by the sheriff’s office.
- Later in November 2026 – Initial court appearance set for May (exact date not specified).
- September 1, 2026 – Corie Walsh charged with three counts of first-degree murder in Illinois.
- September 4, 2026 – Mistrial declared in the trial of Lindsay Clancy.
What’s Next
The sheriff’s office plans to hold a press conference on September 30, 2026 to release additional details. Prosecutors have not indicated whether they will seek enhanced penalties. May will remain in custody pending her upcoming initial appearance, and investigators continue to examine the circumstances surrounding the children’s deaths, including the scope of prior welfare-check interventions.