Parents, grandmother cleared of murder in death of 3-month-old, Georgia officials say
UPDATE (Feb. 21, 2025): Three people have been cleared of wrongdoing in the death of an infant found in a Georgia motel room, the Augusta Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney’s Office told news outlets.
September De’Asia Seright, Lamisha Diane Seright and Bennie Antonio Nash were previously charged with malice murder and felony murder in the August 2024 death of 3-month-old Josiah Seright, McClatchy News reported.
The infant was thought to have died from hypothermia after investigators said his mother, September Seright, wrapped the baby in a wet blanket and left him near a motel air conditioning unit last summer.
A recent review of an autopsy and medical records determined the evidence didn’t support murder charges against the child’s parents and grandmother, the district attorney’s office said Feb. 20, WRDW reported.
“While the autopsy lists the cause and manner of death as undetermined, the temperature of the child was greater than 95 degrees Fahrenheit at the time of his discovery, ruling out hypothermia as a cause of death,” the office told The Augusta Chronicle in a statement.
The original story is below.
A baby died after he was left in a wet blanket near a motel air conditioning unit, Georgia deputies told news outlets. Now, his mother is arrested.
September De’Asia Seright, 19, was one of three people charged with murder and child cruelty in connection with the hypothermia death of her 3-month-old son, Josiah Noel Seright, The Augusta Chronicle reported, citing the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.
Two other adults, Lamisha Diane Seright, 42, and Bennie Antonio Nash, 39, were also charged, according to WJBF.
McClatchy News reached out to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office for more information Aug. 8 and was awaiting a response.
Deputies were called just after 2 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 6, to a Budget Inn motel in Augusta and found Josiah unresponsive, WRDW reported, citing sheriff’s deputies.
The baby was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead around 2:30 a.m., deputies told the station.
September Seright was showering as her son lay in a wet car seat, wrapped in a wet blanket, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by The Augusta Chronicle. Seright then placed the infant near an air conditioning unit for “an unknown amount of time” as she lay in the motel room, deputies said.
The unit’s temperature was set to 61 degrees, WJBF reported.
Authorities determined Josiah died of hypothermia and respiratory failure, deputies told the station. An autopsy is pending.
September Seright, Lamisha Seright and Bennie Nash remained in custody at the Richmond County Jail as of Aug. 8, online records show.
This story was originally published August 8, 2024 at 1:02 PM with the headline "Parents, grandmother cleared of murder in death of 3-month-old, Georgia officials say."