A Kentucky woman was charged with murder Tuesday after she allegedly killed her 17-month-old child, according to court records and Lisa Fogat, the attorney for Peel County for the Commonwealth.
Erica Lawson, 21, faces charges of murder (aggravating circumstances – willful death of a child), failure to report, neglect or abuse of child support, first-degree criminal misconduct, and first-degree wanton endangerment, according to court records. She was being held at the Leslie County Detention Center on Wednesday on $1 million bail.
Middlesboro Police They said they began investigating the case in late July when the 17-month-old girl died. The investigation later led to Lawson’s arrest.
“Lieutenant. Detective [Barry] “Kwan and Joint Detecting Officer Caleb Ayers have been diligently looking through hundreds of leads that included multiple interviews,” Middlesboro Police said in a Facebook post on August 4. “Besides the evidence collected in the investigation, DNA from people who were questioned had a role in this incident.”
Lawson will return to court in November to be charged.
“Today, I had the honor to bring the case against Erica Lawson before a grand jury in Peel County,” Fugate wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday. “I am proud to say that Erica Lawson is now accused of killing her 17-month-old.”
