Mom Shaquan Duley Charged With Killing Kids
A South Carolina Sheriff reports that local mom Shaquan Duley has confessed to killing kids, her own children, Ja'Van and Devean Duley, after her original story did not add up. The 29 year-old mother confessed to authorities that she suffocated her two children and then drove her car into the river with the children secured in their seats, reports CBS. Inconsistent stories and a wide-range of emotions caused investigators to question whether this tragedy was intentional.
Duley had originally told police that her children drowned when she lost control, and her car ran over a bridge and into the river. The problem with the story was summed up by South Carolina Sheriff Larry Williams, "For someone who had just plunged into the Edisto River, and has two children, the clothing wasn't damp as though she tried to retrieve the children from the river." CBS adds that Duley walked for three quarters of a mile to find a driver with a cell phone, rather than running to one of the many nearby homes.
Williams adds that, "hopefully upon presentation of the facts of the probable cause ... they will issue a warrant for murder." Probable cause simply refers to a procedural safegaurd in place to assure that there is a level of suspicion or evidence necessary to reasonably connect an individual to a crime. Based on the confession alone, the police will have little trouble presenting the requisite evidence for an arrest warrant.
Shaquan Duley was originally charged with leaving the scene of an accident, her new charge of killing kids has turned the accident into a full-blown crime scene investigation. Duley does not speak to the father of her deceased children, but told police that her actions were the result of a fight she had with her mother.
Related Resources:
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Understanding Degrees of Guilt (FindLaw)
- Criminal Law: Miranda Rights (provided by Thomas J. Tomko Attorney at Law)