A mother placed her two toddler boys in an oven, turned it on, and killed them.
A Georgia mother of three who killed her two little boys by placing them in an oven and turning it on will likely spend the rest of her life behind bars after a judge in Atlanta ruled on Friday.
Twenty-four-year-old Lamora Williams was convicted of several charges, including two counts of first-degree murder, for the 2017 deaths of her sons: one-year-old Ja’Karter Penn and two-year-old Ke’Yaunte Penn. The two children were reportedly killed an hour apart.
Lamora reportedly called 911 that day and told the dispatcher that when she went into the kitchen, she found the stove lying on her youngest son’s head and her other son on the floor with severe injuries.
She told the dispatcher she didn’t know what to do, saying, “I don’t want to get locked up because this is not my fault. I just got home from work.”
Lamora claimed she had left her three children with a caregiver from noon until 11:30 p.m. that day. When she returned, she said the caregiver was gone, and she found her two sons dead.
However, authorities stated that between midnight on October 12, 2017, and 11 p.m. the next day, Lamora knowingly and intentionally killed the toddlers by placing them in the oven and turning it on.
According to the autopsy report, the boys’ heads were found inside the tipped-over oven. The medical examiner stated that the thermal injuries were consistent with prolonged exposure to dry heat and not from flames. It was noted that it would take an extensive amount of time for the injuries to reach such a degree.
Prosecutors maintained the police’s version of events and discredited Lamora’s claims.
Throughout the trial, Lamora pleaded not guilty.
The boys’ father also called 911 around the same time as Lamora, saying he had received a call from her and that his sons were dead in the apartment. He described video-calling her and seeing the scene, stating in a news interview, “It was like a real-life horror movie, like Friday the 13th.” He was visibly distressed and distraught during the interview.
On Friday, November 15, 2024, Lamora was convicted of 14 charges against her. She was sentenced to life in prison without parole, with an additional 35 years to be served consecutively.
