A Fort Lauderdale mother charged with murder in the starvation death of her 7-year-old son who was found weighing just seven pounds when he was pronounced dead on Christmas Day will be staying behind bars.
Michelle Doe made her first appearance in a Broward courtroom on Thursday, where she was ordered held without bond.
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Doe, 37, was arrested this week on charges including first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, aggravated child abuse, and two counts of neglect of a child in connection with the death of her son, Deonte Atwell.
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The Broward State Attorney's Office said Atwell was diagnosed with thoracic spina bifida and hydrocephalus, had a breathing tube and feeding tube and required around-the-clock skilled nursing care.
But authorities said family members and two home health care employees appeared to have stopped providing him with services, resulting in aggravated abuse and ultimately his death.
Police said Atwell may have suffered for months before he was found and pronounced dead on Dec. 25, 2023. Atwell had turned 7 just two days earlier, on Dec. 23, although prosecutors said it appeared he may have been dead "for quite some time."
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Prosecutors said Atwell endured prolonged starvation, and was horribly malnourished and neglected, weighing just seven pounds when he died with bones poking through his skin.
"The victim endured prolonged starvation amounting to willful torture," a prosecutor said during Doe's court appearance Thursday.
Investigators found 264 unopened bottles of Atwell's feeding formula in the home, the state attorney's office said.
Four other people have been arrested in Atwell's death, including his brother, 21-year-old Tyreck Irvin, and grandfather, 70-year-old James Graham.
Irvin is also charged with first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, aggravated child abuse, and two counts of neglect of a child, while Graham is charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child, neglect of a child, and failure to report child abuse.
Investigators also found Atwell died during a scheme to defraud Medicaid, conservatively estimated at more than $10,000 but less than $50,000, officials said.
The owner of the home health provider, 47-year-old Mirlande Moltimer Ameda, is charged with felony third-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, Medicaid fraud, and neglect of a child.
The nurse assigned to care for Atwell, 33-year-old Cassandre Lassegue, is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated manslaughter of a child, felony murder in third degree, aggravated child abuse, and Medicaid fraud.
Doe was appointed a public defender and also must undergo a mental health screening, the judge said Thursday.
At a separate hearing Thursday afternoon, Atwell's father, Walter, was awarded custody of his two older siblings, ages 9 and 16.
"This is already a tough situation and I don’t want to make it any tougher," Walter Atwell said after the hearing.
