Drug-addict parents unremorseful as baby girl starves to death in deplorable pad

05 August 2023 , 21:14

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First responders called to the home pronounced the baby girl dead at the scene (Image: FOX 8)

A drug-addicted mum and dad showed no remorse after their four-month-old baby girl starved to death in a "deplorable" home, police said.

The father, Angel Taylor, 24, and mother Chevy Lafountain, 31, were taken into custody after emergency services responded to a call in the morning of Wednesday, August 2, reporting that a four-month-old baby girl was not breathing.

The couple lived with their two children in Reserve, an unincorporated community in St John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana. First responders discovered the lifeless infant and sadly pronounced it dead at the scene.

An autopsy to determine the cause of the four-months-old's death was conducted on the same day. It showed the baby had suffered from starvation, malnutrition, dehydration, severe neglect, and child abuse, all of which the coroner’s office said contributed to her death.

Taylor and Lafountain have been charged with second-degree murder, neglect, and child abuse. Their other kid, a 13-month-old boy, was also found neglected and has been put in state custody.

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The mother, Chevy Lafountain (St John The Baptist Sherriff's Office)

Angel Taylor, the baby's father, was arrested and charged with murder alongside the mother (St John The Baptist Sherriff's Office)

Police that inspected their home found that the couple and their two kids lived in deplorable conditions. Sheriff Mike Tregre also said the parents "appeared unremorseful" during questioning, according to Fox 8.

The parents have also been charged with child desertion and cruelty to juveniles with force/violence in the alleged mistreatment of their 13-month-old son. Judge Nghana Lewis set their bonds at $600,000 with no 10% option.

"The father blames everybody but himself. He even blamed the people that provided him the drugs, with his drug abuse problem," Sheriff Tegre explained. "And the mother said she did drugs to the point where she passed out, and she didn't know she was passed out for hours and hours at a time."

The tragic incident comes only weeks after a child escaped her home to beg for food at a nearby shop. The eight-year-old girl in Arnoldsburg, West Virginia, jumped out of a first-floor window of her home and went to a Family Dollar store to beg for food and water.

Police said the family lived in deplorable conditions (FOX 8)

Her parents, Ryan Keith Hardman and Ellio M. Hardman, both 33, have been charged with felony gross neglect of a child. The girl told store staff that her parents refused to feed her and often told her she was unwanted. She had only eaten one sandwich in the last three days, given to her by one of her siblings.

One of the workers, who has not been named, told local media: "The little girl, she came through the store, just walked straight up to us was like, ‘I’m hungry, my mom and dad don’t want me no more, do you have anything I can eat?'"

According to a criminal complaint seen by WOWK-TV, the child walked into the store barefoot and holding a teddy bear. She reportedly told staff that she escaped through her home's window because her parents didn't allow her to go outside.

The couple's other kid, a 13-months-old boy, has been taken into state custody (FOX 8)

The store staff provided her with snacks while they called the police. The authorities found that the parents were unaware of the child's absence and discovered drug paraphernalia in their home.

"She felt dehydrated because she hadn’t drunk enough water and wanted to see if the Family Dollar had anything for her to eat," a police spokesperson said.

They added: "Her parents told her she had an attitude and when they think she has an attitude, they tell her she’s not being good and they don’t want her.."

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The police also said: "This was not the first time they told her they didn’t want her." The girl and her three siblings were taken out of the home. The parents, Ryan Keith Hardman and Ellio M. Hardman are currently in custody on a cash-only bond of $100,000 (£77,830). An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

Vassia Barba