NJ mom in child decapitation once lost custody

NJ mom in child decapitation once lost custody

CAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — A woman who had previously admitted blacking out from drug use decapitated her 2-year-old son and put the head in her home freezer before killing herself, just five months after having regained custody of the child, authorities said Wednesday.

Chevonne Thomas had lost custody of Zahree Thomas in 2010 after allegedly leaving the boy unattended in a car, and admitting she had blacked out in a nearby park after smoking marijuana laced with PCP, a sedative that can cause trance-like conditions, prosecutors said.

Thomas decapitated her son and put his head in the freezer of their Camden home before calling 911 just after midnight Tuesday. Police say she stabbed herself in the neck while officers were outside.

Jason Laughlin, a spokesman for the Camden County prosecutor’s office, said results of toxicology tests would be needed to determine whether Thomas was high on drugs at the time.