Police: parents charged with murder after baby overdoses on methamphetamine
WAXAHACHIE, Texas (CBSDFW.COM) - Heather Williams, 30, and Shawn Lankford, 43, were charged with murder after police say their baby died after ingesting methamphetamine.
Ellis County Sheriff's Deputies arrived at the couple's home on Lone Elm Road as first responders were loading the infant into an ambulance. They were performing CPR on the child. She was taken to Methodist Hospital in Midlothian where, despite lengthy life-saving measures, she died on March 19.
The investigator assigned to the case conducted preliminary interviews with Williams and Lankford.
A subsequent investigation was conducted by the Ellis County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigations Division. At the request of the sheriff's office lead investigator on the case, an autopsy was conducted by the Dallas County Medical Examiner's office.
The autopsy later revealed the manner of death for the child was "toxic effects of methamphetamine in an unsafe sleeping environment."
As a result of the investigation, arrest warrants for the offense of murder were obtained on Lankford and Williams, police said.
On June 07, 2022, the pair were arrested and booked into the Wayne McCollum Detention Center. Their bond was set at $1,000,000 each.