CARY, N.C. (WNCN) — The autopsy of two young girls, who investigators said were killed by their mother in August, was released to CBS 17 on Wednesday.
Launice Shanique Battle, 29, is facing two counts of murder in the deaths of three-year-old Amora Milbourne, and two-year-old Trinity Milbourne. The autopsy revealed both died of hyperthermia after being “left in a vehicle during hot weather for approximately six hours.”
Both Amora and Trinity were also reported in the autopsy to have “no body temperature” reading when found and had “mild [body] decomposition”.
On Aug. 27, Battle’s family said her boyfriend called the family looking for her. This was the same day investigators are accusing her of killing her children.
Battle was found at Duke Raleigh Hospital on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh just before 9:40 p.m. that night, and then arrested Sunday morning and charged with felony murder, CBS 17 previously reported.
CBS 17 also reported that Battle was spotted inside the Vegas Style Sweepstakes on Atlantic Springs Road for six hours just before she was arrested in connection with her daughters death.
She was seen driving off from the sweepstakes parlor in a hurry around 8 p.m., six hours after her arrival there, before authorities found her at Duke Raleigh Hospital.
“On 8/27/2022, she [Amora] and her 2-year-old sibling (OCME Case B22-5708) were reportedly left in a vehicle parked behind a gambling establishment from approximately 1430 hours to 2030 hours (6 hours),” the autopsy said. “It was parked in a possibly partially shaded area. Documented weather for that time was hot, with a high temperature 95 degrees Fahrenheit with skies varying from partly to mostly cloudy with some light rain. Her mother found them unresponsive and drove them to Duke Raleigh Emergency Department.”
Furthermore, the autopsy said, “medical records also indicated that the decedent’s mother admitted to a caretaker that she had left the children in the back seat of her car for approximately four hours while gambling.”
The autopsy also revealed Amora suffered from numerous medical conditions.
She had a history of prematurity, chromosome deletion with associated global developmental delay, congenital heart disease, feeding difficulties treated with a gastrostomy tube, cerebellar ischemia and other issues requiring prior hospitalizations, the autopsy stated.
These medical conditions help confirm the reports of how and why Battle was investigated three times by Child Protective Services in the past three years. Additionally, the final report was made just weeks before both children died.
In July 2019, Battle was accused of neglecting a child.
The report also said CPS intervened to make sure the family received services, including speech therapy and special infant care. It said the family was provided with gas cards to ensure they could make their appointments.
In June 2020, there was a second report of neglect with concerns about Battle not taking a child to follow-up medical appointments.
The final neglect report was made July 8. The report cites a “concern about improper care and improper supervision”.
The autopsy noted that Amora also had eight different evidence markers of medical therapy at the time of her death.
CBS 17 has directly reached out to the Cary Police Department about an updated court appearance for Battle and if she is still facing the death penalty or life in prison without parole. It said the Raleigh Police Department is handling the case. It has since been asked the same questions.
Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman responded to CBS 17’s request for a comment after the release of the autopsy with the following:
“Autopsy reports are but one part of an investigation. The determination by the Office of Chief Medical Examiner is not a legal determination on the issue of whether a criminal offense has occurred, and is based only on those facts known by the pathologist at the time and the medical examination. We will evaluate all the evidence in any decision on how to move forward. Because this case is pending, any additional comments on the facts of the case would not be appropriate.”