A Michigan mother is accused of leaving her 6-month-old son in a car seat to die while she smoked marijuana.
Lovily Johnson, 22, was arrested and charged with murder and first-degree child abuse after investigators say she left her son Noah strapped into a car seat for two days in her Wyoming, Michigan apartment by himself, M Live reported.
Court records state the infant was “knowingly and intentionally deprived” of sustenance to live.
Johnson told investigators that she left her child at her apartment alone from 9 a.m. Monday, July 17 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday July 19, court records state. According to the Detroit Free Press, Johnson told investigators she gave him a bottle the morning of July 17 and left his diaper unchanged.
Investigators say she spent time out of the house smoking marijuana and meeting with friends.
According to court records, when the mother finally decided to have the child taken to a hospital, she did not call 911 and asked the baby’s grandfather to drive her and her son to the hospital on July 19.
When police investigated Johnson’s apartment that evening, they found the room where Noah had been left reached a temperature up to 90.5 degrees.
A Child Protective Services (CPS) complaint filed against Johnson alleges that 6-month-old Noah weighed 12 pounds and had already decomposed when he got to the hospital.
“Noah’s body was in advanced stages of decomposition,’’ court records show. “His stomach was obviously bloated, his eyes were glossy, and he was emitting a strong, foul odor. Noah had blood on his genitals and buttocks.’’
Johnson has a history of CPS complaints filed against her regarding Noah and her 2-year-old daughter dating back to 2015. One of them alleges that her daughter tested positive for marijuana. In the report, Johnson told investigators she smoked the drug during her pregnancy until December 2014.
Johnson is scheduled to appear in Wyoming District Court for a probable cause hearing August 2. She faces up to life in prison if convicted of both murder and child abuse charges.