Three adults in Marietta, Georgia, are facing child cruelty charges after authorities discovered 15 children living with them inside a two-bedroom apartment, according to police and arrest warrants.
The children, ranging in age from 1 to 17, were reportedly living in the apartment with Ashley Jackson, 40, Derrick Jackson, 41, and Briana Reynolds, 36. The three adults told investigators they were the children’s biological parents.
The case began when the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services went to the apartment for a welfare check after receiving information involving two children believed to be living there. Marietta police were asked to assist with the visit.
When investigators initially could not make contact with an adult at the residence, detectives began the process of obtaining a search warrant. During that time, police said 15 children came out of the apartment.
Authorities later determined that 18 people in total were living in the two-bedroom unit at the Laurel Hills Preserve apartment complex near Bells Ferry Road.
According to the arrest warrants, the apartment had only nine beds for the 18 occupants. Investigators also reported finding insufficient food for the children and said there was no toilet paper in the residence or evidence that it had been available recently.
Police also documented a blanket with mold growing on it inside one of the bedrooms. Marijuana was reportedly found in the apartment in an area accessible to the children.
The children were also reportedly left without adult supervision for more than three hours, according to information contained in the warrants.
After the adults returned to the apartment roughly three hours later, police took Jackson, Jackson and Reynolds into custody.
All three face charges of first-degree and second-degree cruelty to children, along with marijuana possession charges. Derrick Jackson is also facing an additional charge of crossing the guard line related to allegations involving marijuana after he arrived at the county correctional facility.
The 15 children were subsequently moved by DFCS workers to safe environments.
The three adults remained in custody without bond as of the latest reports. The case remains ongoing, and the allegations against the defendants have not been resolved in court.
