A Florida mother is facing charges after allegedly attempting to drown her three children in a community pool while on livestream.
According to PEOPLE, Shaniece Willingham, 24, was charged with three counts of first-degree premeditated attempted murder in connection with the attempted drowning of her children, ages 3, 2, and 8 months, on Wednesday (September 24).
The incident reportedly unfolded after a heated phone call between Willingham and the father of her children, Theophilus Williams. Willingham’s mother, Sherrisse McCray, tried to intervene in the situation, but the two women argued, prompting McCray to ask her daughter to leave the home.
Willingham then called Williams to ask him to pick up the children. According to a pretrial detention motion, Williams responded, saying he “doesn’t give a f***” and “ain’t doing anything.”
Willingham later took the children to the community pool, where she began livestreaming on Instagram. She reportedly said the livestream was her “last goodbye” as she felt helpless and that she could no longer care for the children.
“I love my kids so much, but I cannot leave them behind because no one can take care of them, and they would be safe with God,” Willingham allegedly said during the livestream.
According to authorities, Willingham FaceTimed her mother from the pool to show her location, then tied herself and the children together with a rope. When she saw a vehicle approaching, Willingham allegedly pushed herself and the children into the water in what prosecutors said was an attempt to kill them all.
Family members who rushed to the pool after seeing the livestream were able to rescue the children. According to the sheriff’s office, the children sustained “significant injuries.”
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister called the case “nothing short of horrific.”
“The fear and betrayal these innocent children must have felt at the hands of the one person meant to love, care for, and protect them is unimaginable,” Chronister said. “This decision was not a cry for help; it was a deliberate act of cruelty. Mental health challenges may provide an explanation, but there is no excuse.”
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