A woman in St. Louis, Missouri, is facing charges after her 20-month-old daughter died of what seemed to be severe malnutrition. According to reports, she has been charged with two counts of abuse or neglect of a child. The suspect was identified as Sausha Myers. She was charged on Sunday, June 14, 2026, after her two children were allegedly found emaciated in their family home in the 4300 block of St. Ferdinand, First Alert 4 and FOX2 reported, citing court documents.Myers called the copsThe outlets further reported that Myers, 29, called the police to report that her 20-month-old daughter was nonresponsive and breathing slowly. Upon arrival, officers found the child lying on the living room floor.Authorities also discovered another 3-year-old girl inside the house. Both children seemed malnourished, and the younger child was found with pressure marks, or bed sores, on her back and head. The two children were subsequently taken to St. Louis Children’s Hospital for medical care.Younger child showed signs of severe neglectAccording to court documents, the younger child weighed just 10 pounds and showed signs of severe neglect, including bedsores and pressure marks on her back and head. She was pronounced dead shortly after being transported to the hospital.The 3-year-old child remained in the hospital at the time of filing this report and was described in a probable cause statement as being very malnourished, weighing 17 pounds and 3 ounces, according to reports.What is lanugo?Court filings revealed that the 3‑year‑old child had developed lanugo, a fine, downy hair that typically appears on newborns but is unusual in older children. It can emerge when the body lacks sufficient fat reserves, serving as a survival mechanism to help retain warmth. Its presence in a child of this age is widely recognized as a clinical indicator of malnutrition.According to the Cleveland Clinic, lanugo often develops when a person does not have enough body fat to regulate temperature, making it a visible sign of poor nutrition. After being taken into custody at the hospital, Myers has been held without bond and confirmed that she is the sole caregiver of both children.She also admitted that she was aware her children were not reaching key developmental milestones, yet neither child had seen a paediatrician in more than a year. As detectives looked deeper into the family’s living conditions, they found that the younger child was consuming fewer than 250 calories a day. Myers allegedly told investigators that her youngest daughter’s diet consisted primarily of yogurt, vegetable pouches, and fruit pouches.