Sherry Diane Magby, a 37-year-old resident of Douglasville, Georgia, was arrested in April 2026 following a horrific neglect case that resulted in the death of a one-year-old child. Magby is currently facing six counts of second-degree cruelty to children after allegedly leaving six minors—ranging in age from one to ten—unsupervised for approximately 12 hours. Authorities described the home as being in a state of extreme disarray with a pervasive, foul odor throughout the residence.
The details of the neglect are particularly grim; the ten-year-old child was reportedly left in charge of five younger siblings with no access to food. According to investigators, the eldest child witnessed the one-year-old eating cockroaches and ants to stave off hunger. Emergency services were eventually called to the home, where they found the one-year-old in cardiac arrest; the infant was later pronounced dead, though an official cause of death has not been finalized.
At the time of this incident, Magby was already out on bond for a violent 2023 case involving the aggravated assault and child cruelty of a 15-year-old, whom she allegedly stabbed with a pocketknife. She is currently being held at the Douglas County Jail without bond. Her trial for the previous 2023 charges was set to begin in May 2026, but she now faces these additional, severe charges related to the fatalities and conditions found at her home.