Marlena Murray: Alabama mom was high on drugs and taking nude selfies as her toddler drowned in pond
ECLECTIC, ALABAMA: An Alabama woman is charged with using drugs and taking naked pictures of herself inside her house as her 2-year-old son ran away and drowned in a nearby pond, according to officials.
According to the police, Josiah Meadors, 2, drowned in a pond on May 2, after leaving his house alone. Marlena Murray, 29, his mother, was charged with criminal negligence homicide on October 11. She surrendered on Tuesday, October 18.
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Murray’s indictment alleges she “recklessly caused the death of another person by being criminally negligent.”
Police: Elmore County mother did drugs, took nude pics before toddler drowned https://t.co/njCckgf2Jg @wsfa12news
— Mark Bullock (@markb_wsfa) October 20, 2022
Online booking records show that she turned herself in to police on Tuesday night and was lodged in the Elmore County Jail.
At around 5.11 pm CDT on May 2, roughly 15 minutes after her son allegedly ran away from the house, Murray reportedly dialed 911. Police and fire departments investigated the neighborhood and discovered the toddler about an hour later, unconscious in a pond about 1,400 feet from the house, WSFA reported.
Josiah was given CPR before being taken to Elmore Community Hospital, where he was later declared dead, according to the police. The Eclectic Police Department's Detective Zack Lyles said that Murray told 911 she was outdoors with her child before he ran off. She allegedly said that she observed her son rushing after his dog and went over to get his cup. Murray claimed to have seen where he was running but had turned around to seek help from other family members before dialing 911, according to Lyles.
However, the police found her statements to be false during the investigation. Lyles claimed that when her child ran away, Murray was inside the house using illicit drugs and shooting provocative photos for solicitation. This "spoke volumes" about why the toddler ran off, he added. “This is something that is not OK,” Lyles told the tv station.
According to WSFA, Murray could spend up to a year in county prison if found guilty of the negligent homicide allegation. Her bail amount was set at $75,000. She hasn't appeared in court yet.