Woman won’t be charged in deaths of daughter, grandson

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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) – Prosecutors say a central Florida woman won’t face criminal charges in the drowning deaths of her daughter and grandson.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reports that a State Attorney’s Office memorandum released Thursday says there is “insufficient evidence” that Martha Jenkins exhibited a “gross and/or flagrant violation” while caring for the 2-year-old girl and 1-year-old boy.

Sheriff’s investigators say Ashton Jenkins and Shana Cavanaugh died July 30 after slipping out of a sliding glass door and falling into a filthy backyard pool. Investigators had recommended two counts of aggravated manslaughter of a child after interviewing Jenkins’ relatives and seeing their poor living conditions.

Officials say 33-year-old Jenkins, of Holly Hill, near Daytona Beach, was sleeping when the children left the house. Jenkins’ mother told officials the door was left slightly open so cats could come and go.

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