South Carolina mother charged after allegedly starving her children to death

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A woman in South Carolina has been accused of letting her two young daughters starve to death in her home.

Deputies responded to a welfare check at the Ladson home of Justine May on Tuesday. When they arrived, they found May's two children, Emory Deacon, 33 months, and Harley Deacon, 15 months, dead from apparent starvation and dehydration, according to Fox 4.

May was reportedly standing outside of her home crying and "speaking incoherently" when the deputies arrived.

She told police she "did not remember" the last time she fed her children and said that she knew that "not feeding her children was neglectful," according to court documents.

May reportedly described the previous two weeks as a blur that she could barely remember. She was arrested on two counts of homicide by child neglect, according to WALA.

Authorities have had to visit May in the past.

Between Aug. 10 and the day the children were found dead, deputies responded to May's house 13 times. One of those visits included personnel from the South Carolina Department of Social Services. Another visit involved members of the state's Department of Mental Health and its Mobile Crisis Unit.

When audio of the 911 call directing deputies to the house was made public, a dispatcher said that the office was "no longer conducting welfare checks at that address," stirring up the ire of some locals.

The sheriff's office explained that it had received 21 calls about May's address since Aug. 10, and said that there was no indication during any of the previous stops that either of the children were in danger.

“During the prior responses, deputies and participating agency personnel did not report observations indicating an immediate concern for the children’s welfare,” the sheriff's office said.

"The Charleston County Sheriff’s Office recognizes the profound gravity of this tragedy and extends its deepest condolences to everyone affected," the CCSO said in a statement. "We remain steadfast in our commitment to professional, lawful, and accountable service to this community."

May appears to have been aware that people in her life were concerned for her mental health. She shared screenshots on Facebook of messages she had received from family members and the little girls' father begging her to seek help.

"I am begging you to hear me. This is not you. I am f---ing begging you to please get help," the father of the girls wrote to her.

"I need you to understand that no matter what, you are the mother of Emory and Harlow. You’ve always been a good mother," he wrote. "This is not you. Please come back. Please get help."