911 call reveals concerns for welfare of 2 children found starved to death at home

LADSON, SC (WCSC/Gray News) — Two children found dead in a home earlier this week in South Carolina have been identified, and authorities said it’s not the first time they have been called to the residence.

Emory Deacon, 2, and Harlow Deacon, 15 months, died of starvation and dehydration due to neglect, Charleston County Coroner Bobbi Jo O’Neal said.

Justine May, the children’s mother and described as their primary caregiver, was charged in the case with two counts of homicide by child abuse.

According to the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office, officers responded to numerous calls to the Pinewood Drive residence before finally finding the two children dead during a welfare check at the home.

Previous calls to the home reportedly included welfare checks and coordinated visits with the South Carolina Department of Human Services and the South Carolina Department of Mental Health Mobile Crisis Unit.

Authorities said deputies made contact with May and the children in August and again several times in September, noting they observed no signs of concern during those visits.

On Tuesday, authorities said they were called back to the home after a 911 call was received that morning asking officers to conduct a welfare check on the two girls even though they had not been seen because their mother was acting differently when walking alone in the neighborhood.

“I’m just worried because she didn’t have her kids and no one saw her kids,” the caller told the Charleston County 911 dispatcher. “She was walking down the street today, and she didn’t have her babies, and that’s not like her.”

When officers arrived at the home that afternoon, they said May had left the house and was crying and speaking incoherently. When they entered, they saw the two children dead.

May was taken into custody.

According to the affidavits, after being read her Miranda rights, May told detectives she had spent the previous two weeks in a “blur,” saying she couldn’t remember the last time she fed Emory and Harlow or gave them water.

Authorities said May told detectives she thought her children died because they weren’t eating. She reportedly told deputies she knew not feeding her children was negligent and confirmed she was the only one present in the home and was the only one caring for the girls in recent weeks.

May remains imprisoned at the Al Cannon Detention Center.