Three SC child abuse cases shake communities in one week. Here’s what to know
Authorities in South Carolina announced charges in three separate cases within days of one another, each involving young children who were either killed, critically injured or presumed dead at the hands of a parent or caregiver. The cases in Aiken and Columbia have drawn responses from local police, the FBI and the state Department of Social Services.
Here are key takeaways:
- A 4-year-old girl reported missing in Aiken on June 30 is now presumed dead, and her parents have been arrested, Aiken County Sheriff Marty Sawyer announced at a July 4 news conference.
- Johmarea Harris, 23, and Michilae Herring, 22, the parents of Javeayah Harris, have been charged with murder/homicide by child abuse, with Herring also charged with filing a false police report.
- Investigators believe Javeayah had been deceased for at least a month before the June 30 missing person call, Sawyer said, and the search for her body has expanded outside Aiken County with FBI assistance.
- In Columbia, Zana Oden, 28, was charged with three counts of unlawful conduct toward a child after her three children — ages 6, 4 and 2 — were critically injured in a Monday night house fire on Floran Street while left home alone.
- The children had been left unattended for at least a week in filthy conditions, malnourished and with insects found in the youngest child’s diaper, prosecutors said at a bond hearing where Oden received $300,000 bond and Mal’k Locke, father of one child, received $200,000.
- The three burned children are in stable condition at the JMS Burn Center in Augusta, Georgia, and the South Carolina Department of Social Services has stepped in, with the children expected to go into emergency custody.
- Diante Goins, 23, has been charged with homicide by child abuse in the death of 8-month-old Kaileah Hill, who was brought to Prisma Health Richland on June 27 with signs of physical abuse and died from her injuries days later.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.
This story was originally published July 6, 2026 at 9:53 AM with the headline "Three SC child abuse cases shake communities in one week. Here’s what to know."
Noah Feit
The State