Louisiana Couple Arrested For Murder After Their 12-Year-Old Son Died Weighing Just 28 Pounds, Sheriff Says

A couple in Louisiana was arrested in connection with the death of their severely underweight and malnourished 12-year-old son last year.

According to the Jefferson Davis Sheriff’s Office, on Feb. 16, deputies took Jennifer Ann Duhon and Adam Duhon, both 40, into custody and charged them with the second-degree murder of the juvenile.

The sheriff’s office said the Department of Family and Services notified detectives on Oct. 19, 2022, about the agency's investigation into the death of the boy.

The following day, detectives initiated their own investigation, obtaining medical records and interviewing the couple’s neighbors and family members.

“It was learned that the child died on October 17, 2022, at Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital” in Baton Rouge, the sheriff’s office said, noting that “hospital records indicated that the child was 42 inches tall and weighed 28 pounds at time of death.”

An autopsy provided to the Jefferson Davis Parish Coroner in January indicated the cause of death as complications from malnutrition, and the manner of death was deemed a homicide.

The investigation is ongoing.