Parents face murder charges after 2-year-old is mauled to death by starved pit bull
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekdayYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USYour briefing on the latest headlines from across the USPolice arrested the parents of a 2-year-old Oklahoma City girl after she was mauled to death by their allegedly starving pet pit bull— which had been locked in the room with her. Oklahoma City police responded to their home around 11:30 pm on Nov. 18 after Darci Lambert, 24, called 911 to report that her daughter, Locklynn McGuire, had stopped breathing. When police arrived, they found the girl dead in her bedroom with wounds on her body that were consistent with dog bites. Oklahoma City Animal Welfare was called to the scene and removed four dogs from the home. Three of the four were malnourished, according to Fox 25. One of the dogs — whose ribs and hip bones were visible under its skin — was a black pit bull that cops said carried out the attack on the toddler. According to an affidavit obtained by Fox25, Jordan McGuire, 34, who is the girl's father, put her to sleep around 7:30 pm and then took medicine to help him sleep. Lambert was at work until 10:30 pm. Darci Lambert, 24, and Jordan McGuire, 34, were arrested and charged with second-degree murder after their daughter, Locklynn McGuire, was killed on Nov. 18 by one of the family's dogs that was locked in her room. (Oklahoma County Detention Center)McGuire told police he woke up around 8:30 pm and checked on the girl, and said she was sleeping on her bed next to the black pit bull. He told police that the dog was kept in the room because it would fight with the family's other three dogs. According to the affidavit, the door had toddler locks on it that would prevent Locklynn from leaving. Lambert said she did not check on the girl immediately after she returned home from work, and only found her body later after hearing heavy breathing coming from the room, according to the Oklahoma City Free Press. She allegedly told first responders: "My daughter got ate by the pit," the Free Press reported According to the affidavit, the girl's body showed evidence of extreme trauma that was consistent with a violent and prolonged dog attack, according to the outlet. She and McGuire were arrested and charged with second-degree murder on Nov. 21. As of Monday, the couple were being held in the Oklahoma County Detention Center, both on $1 million bonds. The affidavit includes a note stating that the girl was attacked by the same dog on November 6 and had to be treated at the Oklahoma University Children's Hospital. After that attack, Oklahoma Human Services was called in and conducted an investigation but did not remove the child from the home. Lambert reportedly told investigators that she believed the pit bull was the dog that attacked the girl, and said Locklyn required plastic surgery after the attack. Oklahoma City Police and Oklahoma City Animal Welfare were reportedly not notified of the November 6 incident. The affidavit says that McGuire and Lambert continued to lock the dog in the room with Locklynn despite the November 6 incident. Oklahoma State Representative JJ Humphrey told Fox25 that he "can't understand" why the girl or the dogs weren't removed by OKDHS. "You got to remove the harm, either remove the kid or remove the harm. Pretty simple to do. Can't understand why that wouldn't be done," he told the outlet. "But absolutely if [OKDHS] did their job, you would not have a death here. You'd have a live baby."The Independent has requested comment from OKDHS. The agency issued a statement to Fox25, saying that "the loss of any child’s life is heartbreaking, and our Oklahoma Human Services team grieves with the community.""The agency is committed to working in collaboration with all involved agencies as they investigate this tragic situation and gather the facts," the OKDHS said.
