Cause of death of baby’s shock revealed after 2-month-old was found dead in hotel room and mother arrested

A MOTHER has been arrested and charged in the death of her two-month-old baby at a Mississippi hotel just days after regaining custody of the child.

Clinton, Hinds County police were called Tuesday morning (June 21) at the Econo Lodge Hotel on Clinton Center Drive, where the child was found dead.

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The hotel manager told police he heard a woman screaming from a hotel room around 10 a.m., with other neighbors confirming they heard screams as well before ringing 911.

When they arrived at the scene, officers found a dead two-month-old baby in a room.

According to the hotel manager, five people had been living in the hotel room for a month and a half, including several children.

Mother Darla Luke was charged with child neglect and her other children, who had been living in the hotel room, were placed with a grandmother by the Department of Human Services, according to local press.

The tragic incident came after Luke was charged in another child molestation incident on June 7.

“Between June 7 and June 21, the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services returned the children to its care,” Amanda Jones, a spokeswoman for the City of Clinton, said in a statement.

The Hinds County coroner said he believes the baby may have died of asphyxia, possibly as a result of co-sleeping.

An autopsy will be performed to determine the exact cause of death.

Police have yet to release any further details on the case, which is still under investigation.

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