TRAGEDY IN LADSON: A MOTHER’S UNFORGIVABLE NEGLECT

Bodycam footage released on October 9, 2026, from Ladson, South Carolina, offers a heartbreaking glimpse into a life that should have been long and full. The video shows little Harlow Deacon in her mother’s arms during a routine welfare check, with her sister Emory heard playing nearby in the background. Tragically, just weeks later on September 29, both young sisters were discovered dead inside that same home.

Their father and extended family had repeatedly raised red flags and requested welfare checks, desperate to ensure the children were safe. Today, their mother, Justine May, faces two counts of homicide by child neglect. According to reports, the mother abandoned the young girls without food or water for over a week. The blaring background music recorded on the officer’s bodycam leaves a chilling impression, raising the painful question of whether it was intentionally used to drown out the children’s cries for help.

Watching the archived footage—seeing these bright, innocent sisters moving, making sounds, and simply being children—is deeply agonizing. They should be preparing for upcoming holidays, learning new words, and growing up side-by-side. Instead, a grieving family and community are left mourning two precious lives taken far too soon, cut short by catastrophic neglect despite clear early warning signs.