The shocking developments were announced Tuesday at a press conference in Lakeland, where detectives said the duo is charged with murder in the death of an infant child.
The 22-day-old baby, Betsey Kee Stephens, was found dead in the couple's custody after detectives say she starved to death.
Ruby, 23, and Roy Stephens, 48, told police they had just arrived in town from Indiana and checked into their motel when they discovered something was wrong.
They said baby Betsey's feet were cold, so they covered them with a blanket and then got into the car to go to dinner.
After arriving at the Golden Corral restaurant on U.S. Highway 98, they said they noticed Betsey was unresponsive, so they called 911.
The investigation has since revealed that Betsey had been dead for more than three hours before anyone called emergency officials.
Comment: They planned to fill their stomachs with food while their child died of starvation. These creatures are not human, but they are also not animals, because no animal mother would deny her child food. Read the following article to understand the nature of these monsters.
Police Tuesday said pictures from the scene are unsettling.
"When I saw the photographs...it shook me to my core because in thirty years, I have never seen anything like that," said Assistant Police Chief Mike Link.
According to the medical examiner, Betsey weighed little more than four pounds, about half of what she should have weighed.
Both Ruby and Roy, who police said is not the biological father, claim to have fed the baby several times over the trip down from Indiana. The medical examiner, however, says that is not possible. There was very little food found in her body.
"It's very apparent -- it would be very apparent to anyone who saw the photographs -- that this did not occur overnight or in days," said Asst. Chief Link. "In my opinion this child suffered from day one of birth, to the time that she passed away."
The baby's death has been ruled a homicide, and both have been charged with first-degree murder.
Betsey had two siblings, a 1-year-old brother and a 2-year-old sister, in the car at the time of the incident. The Lakeland Police Department says they are now with the Department of Children and Families.
"They failed miserably to take care of this child. She suffered tremendously over the 22 days she was alive to meet this kind of demise," Link said.
Are the people in the US so downtrodden that they care nothing for the a life of a child they have created, a child should be loved and nurtured. Instead we have a child that been neglected, abused and left to die from day one! Or should some in society never have children, usually nature takes care of this, the man or woman is infertile. Ah! an ethical debate.
What kind of society can accept this abnormal behavior. Yes there is outrage. And the most despicable cases come to the media. I ask how may more children are suffering. I read on Sott today that 1 MILLION would not have access to food stamps this year. They have been cut off! How many families trying to bring up there kids in a decent way, feed and clothe, provide a roof over there heads will be affected.
We hear the same old mantra "They are black and lazy" "They don't want to work" "All they want is a government handout, and we have to pay" "All they want to do is sit around all day and let the government take care of them"
Meanwhile the government, elites, 1% who cares what there name is it's all the same (US and it's affiliates, known as psychopaths) is giving Billions of dollars to fund and create chaos around the globe that in turn affects may more millions with pain and suffering
How many people in the US don't have jobs, feeding the poor is a crime. So down the spiral goes, thanks to the psychopaths.