A Missouri mother is accused of starving her 20-month-old daughter to death, with the toddler weighing a little more than a newborn pounds when she died.
On June 14, St. Louis police were called to a home after 29-year-old Sausha Myers dialed 911 and reported that one of her children was unresponsive and struggling to breathe.
When officers arrived, they found both of Myers’ daughters severely malnourished.
Sky – only four months short of turning two – had no pulse and was rushed to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead a short time later. According to court documents obtained by KSDK, the little girl weighed just 10 pounds and suffered from bed sores.
Her 3-year-old sister, Star, was also taken to intensive care after officers discovered she weighed only 17 pounds.
Police said that Star – who is nonverbal – had started growing lanugo, a soft body hair associated with severe malnutrition that develops when the body lacks enough fat to keep warm, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Yogurt and veggie pouches
As investigators worked to piece together what had happened inside the home, they learned that neither child had seen a doctor in more than a year.
According to a probable cause statement, the neglectful mother admitted she was the girls’ sole caregiver and knew they were not developing properly.
Authorities said Sky survived largely on yogurt along with fruit and vegetable pouches, with detectives later estimating that her diet amounted to around 250 calories a day, KMOV reported – far short of the 1,000 to 1,400 calories a day required for toddlers.
Myers cut communication
The allegations came as a devastating shock to Myers’ mother, Driyah Boss Milon, who said she had spent the last two years trying to find her daughter after she suddenly cut off contact with the family.
Speaking in a Facebook video, the teary-eyed grandmother said nobody knew where Myers had gone after she blocked relatives and stopped responding to calls and emails.
“We’ve literally looked for her over the past two years. We’ve sent emails, her son has tried to call her,” Milon said, explaining she has been caring for Myer’s three older children who live with her in Vegas.
“The last we heard is that she was in St. Louis, but nobody knew where because she cut all communication. She blocked everybody, all family members.”
“The next time I see my youngest grandbaby is going to be at a funeral home,” she said through tears.
‘That’s not my daughter’
The grieving grandmother said she struggled to reconcile the allegations with the daughter she remembered.
“I don’t know what my daughter was going through. I don’t because that’s not my daughter,” she said in the June 16 clip.
“I’ve watched my baby with her children. Anybody that knows my daughter knows that she loved her babies.”
Friends and relatives who knew Myers immediately wondered whether she had been suffering from a mental illness, Milon added.
“She had to have some type of mental illness or something, because there is no way my daughter would have just starved her babies like that.”
‘Worst nightmare’
That same day, Milon returned to Facebook with another heartbreaking message, this time with a heartbreaking tribute to Sky.
“My baby Sky is no longer here, her spirit has passed on, there are no words. I only have tears and unanswered questions,” Milon wrote in the post alongside a photo of baby Sky.
She continued, “I only pray this is a nightmare I’ll wake up from tomorrow but the likelihood of that isn’t going to happen, I have to make arrangements for my baby girl, my grandgirl. It’s a parent and grandparent’s worst nightmare to arrange end of life plans for their child let alone a baby.”
“I forever love you Sky,” she added.
Sausha Mia Myers was charged with two counts of child abuse and neglect with serious physical injury.
Rest in peace, Sky. Please share your best wishes for Star and her family in the comment section below and then share this story so others can do the same.
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