‘Lost’ toddler dies after spending night in freezing cold, police say. Mother charged
A 3-year-old girl died after deputies say she wandered with her mother for hours in the Georgia woods as temperatures fell below freezing.
Uriha Ridge, 35, was arrested on felony murder and child cruelty charges after she vanished with her two young children around midnight on Jan. 16, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies got a call around noon that day about a woman and her kids reportedly “lost” in the woods near the Foxhall Resort in Douglasville, where they had been staying, deputies said in a news release.
Some time later, Ridge and her children — a 7-year-old and a 3-year-old — were found far from the hotel, “soaking wet” and “minimally clothed,” after spending the night outdoors, according to the sheriff’s office.
Temperatures plummeted that night as a dangerous cold snap brought freezing rain and gusty winds to north Georgia and the Atlanta area.
All three were taken to a hospital, where the 3-year-old died from “exposure to the elements,” deputies said.
The 7-year-old is still hospitalized, though their condition wasn’t known as of Jan. 25.
A ride-share driver recalled dropping the family off the night before at an industrial building where Ridge said she worked, WSB-TV reported.
“It was a little weird because they were all in pajamas,” the driver told the station.
Investigators believe Ridge had been using illicit drugs when she went into the woods with her two kids, according to the release. Twelve hours passed before she called for help, “despite having a cell phone with a properly charged battery,” deputies said.
Ridge remained in custody at the Douglas County Jail without bond as of Jan. 25, online records show.
Authorities said the investigation is ongoing.
Douglasville is about 20 miles west of downtown Atlanta.
This story was originally published January 25, 2024 at 8:27 AM with the headline "‘Lost’ toddler dies after spending night in freezing cold, police say. Mother charged."