3-year-old dies after Georgia woman keeps her kids in freezing woods overnight, police say

A mother is facing charges including murder and child cruelty after Georgia officials said she spent the night in the woods with her two young children on a evening when temperatures dipped below freezing, and one of them died.

Douglas County Sheriff's Office deputies responded just before noon on Jan. 16, to a report of a woman and her two children lost in the woods near Foxhall Resort in the city of Douglasville, about 22 miles west of downtown Atlanta.

With the assistance from Foxhall employees, deputies found the mother and her children, ages 3 and 7, "in a wooden area far from the resort hotel where they were staying," according to a news release from the sheriff's office.

Deputies, who in the release identified the woman as Uriha Ridge, 35, "immediately began to render aid" to Ridge and her two children.

The children, the release continues, "were soaking wet and knew the temperatures had been below freezing throughout the night."

First responders transported Ridge and her children to local hospitals, where they said the 3-year-old died, "due to what is believed to be exposure to the elements."

The low in greater Atlanta on Jan. 16 was 18 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

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A properly charged cell phone and below freezing temp

A preliminary investigation by officials determined Ridge allegedly consumed illicit drugs before and after she entered the woods with her children, "minimally clothed where she spent more than 11 hours in the rain and below-freezing temperatures."

The family entered the woods about 12 a.m. and, according to the release, Ridge did not call for help until the next morning at 11:51 a.m. "despite having a cell phone with a properly charged battery."

"The consumption of illegal drugs is believed to be the root cause" of why Ridge went into the woods with her children, the release continues, leading her 3-year-old child's death and the hospitalization of her 7-year-old.

The condition of the child who survived was not immediately known Thursday.

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Jailed without bond facing charges including murder

On Jan. 19, Ridge was booked into the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Jail where online records show she remained without bond on multiple felony charges Thursday.

It was not immediately known if Ridge and obtained an attorney.

She was slated to appear in court this week on charges including felony murder, cruelty to children and possession of marijuana, jail records show.

The case remained under investigation Thursday, officials said.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.