Police Say Texas Woman and Her Daughter Lived in the Same House as Her Dead Mother for 3 Years
A Texas woman has been arrested after police believe that she and her daughter had been living in a house alongside her mother’s corpse for years.
Delissa Navonne Crayton, 47, and her daughter — who was under the age of 15 at the time — lived with the deceased body of Crayton’s 71-year-old mother for three years after the elderly woman died in 2016, the Seguin Police Department alleged on social media.
Jacqueline Louise Crayton had hit her head after falling onto the floor, which authorities described as initially non-life threatening, however, police said she died days later after Crayton allegedly failed to provide adequate medical assistance for her mother.
According to police, Crayton and her daughter lived together in a two-bedroom home, with the elderly woman’s skeleton remaining in one of the bedrooms.
Crayton was arrested on July 10 after a warrant was issued, and was charged with injury to a child under the age of 15 through recklessly, by omission, causing to a child, serious mental deficiency, impairment or injury, which is a second-degree felony, according to the Seguin Police Department’s post.
Additional charges against Crayton are anticipated, police added.
She’s currently being held at the Guadalupe County Jail on a $200,000 bond and faces up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.
“The child has been placed with family members and is receiving services from the Seguin Police Department Crime Victim’s Liaison, Guadalupe County Child Advocacy Center, and Child Protective Services,” police added.
“This is an ongoing and active investigation being conducted by Seguin Police Department, the Texas Rangers and the Guadalupe County Attorney’s Office.”
It’s still unclear as to how the remains were discovered by authorities, which are currently being examined by the Texas State University’s Forensic Anthropology Center, according to the Seguin Police Department.
PEOPLE’s request for comment from the Guadalupe County Attorney’s Office was not immediately provided.
