© Fulton County Sheriff's Office
LaShirley Morris (left) and Glenndria Morris (right) are charged in the beating death of a 3-year-old boy who took a cupcake from their kitchen.
LaShirley Morris (left) and Glenndria Morris (right) are charged in the beating death of a 3-year-old boy who took a cupcake from their kitchen.
The Fulton County District Attorney's Office says LaShirley Morris, 27, and Glenndria Morris, 25, were formally charged Tuesday with two counts of felony murder, one count of aggravated assault and two counts of cruelty in the first-degree.
Authorities say it happened Oct. 21. According to the indictment, LaShirley Morris used the bat to hit KeJuan Mason repeatedly in the head while her sister - the child's legal guardian - used her hand to spank the little boy.
Glenndria Morris gained custody of Mason and his twin brother after his parents lost custody of the children. The children's mother said she lost custody when she became homeless, but was working to get the kids back, according to Fox 5 Atlanta.
The boy's family was originally told that he had choked on a cupcake. This was disproven when the coroner ruled that he had died from blunt force trauma.
'He choked on a cupcake? I knew right then it wasn't right, I had a feeling, a mother has that feeling that something was wrong,' said relative Geraldine Mason.
Mason's family said that they want to see the sisters prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
'I'm still grieving, I'm mad, I'm upset and I'm angry, but I have to have peace for my other grand-babies that need me,' said Kejuan's grandmother, Xavier Upshaw.
The women are being held in the Fulton County Jail. Bond for both was set at $200,000. It's unknown if either has an attorney. If they're convicted of their crimes, they could face life in prison.
A GoFundMe has been set up to pay for funeral expenses.
