Lamora Williams, a 24-year-old Atlanta resident, called Jameel Penn in October 2017 to inform him that his two sons had died. “It was like a real horror movie,” Jameel said of the video call. “It was Friday the thirteenth. “I knew what was going on when I saw my kid, how I saw my kid.”
Ke’Yaunte Penn and Ja’Karter Williams were discovered with their heads inside an oven by emergency personnel. Williams allegedly put the kids in the oven and turned it on high heat. The medical examiner couldn’t rule out the possibility that the boys were murdered before being placed in the oven.
The autopsy report, however, stated that the boys were in the oven for a long time. According to the report:
“These thermal changes appear to be entirely caused by dry heat and changes caused by prolonged heat exposure.” It would take a significant amount of time to reach this level.”
Lamora’s mother stated that her daughter was troubled from a young age
Page Contents
- 1 Lamora’s mother stated that her daughter was troubled from a young age
- 2 Brenda Williams attempted to take custody of the children after Lamora’s boyfriend abandoned her
- 3 Williams informed the 911 operator that she had no idea who had murdered the boys
- 4 Lamora was charged with murder in 2018, but it is unclear whether she was imprisoned. Williams
According to Jameel Penn of CBS46, Lamora’s parents suspected she had a mental illness since she was born. Brenda Williams, Williams’ mother, told the outlet:
“She had a slow learning curve.” I had to take her out of school and homeschool her. She would do simple things like cut the heads off my other daughter’s dolls. We’ve all seen stuff like this in horror movies.”
Penn stated that Lamora deteriorated after her father’s death in 2014. “Every year after 2014, it got worse and worse,” Penn observed. “That was her backbone, and when she lost him, she lost the entire world.”
Brenda Williams attempted to take custody of the children after Lamora’s boyfriend abandoned her
Lamora Williams had her first child, a daughter, when she was 18 years old. Her daughter’s father’s family assisted in caring for the child. Williams then began dating Jameel Penn, with whom she had three children. Jameel ended the relationship in 2017, but continued to financially and physically assist Lamora in raising the children.
Brenda Williams predicted disaster following the breakup. She stated to CBS46:
“Mora wasn’t right, she hasn’t been right, and when the kids’ father left her three months ago, I told him something tragic was going to happen.” She’ll do something to those kids, and she’ll do something to herself.”
Brenda attempted to gain custody of the children or to have authorities take them away from her care. She contacted the Division of Family and Children Services, expressing concern about Lamora’s mental health and claiming that she was failing to feed the children.
Tabitha Hollingworth, Lamora’s sister, echoed Brenda’s concerns, claiming that Lamora frequently left the toddlers alone at home. “She had issues, and the fact that the state failed her, that’s a problem,” Tabitha explained. “She routinely left her children alone at home and had even attempted to cut her wrists.” Lamora, according to a family member of Williams, suffered from postpartum depression.
Williams informed the 911 operator that she had no idea who had murdered the boys
Lamora called her close friend Neesa Smith on October 13, 2017. Lamora, distraught, told Smith she couldn’t do it any longer, and that her two youngest children had died. Neesa advised her to call the police, but she called Jameel first.
AD Williams told the operator several times that she didn’t want to go to jail because her children died while she was at work. “This is so serious,” Lamora explained to the dispatcher. “I’m terrified. I don’t want to be locked up just because I was at work.”
Lamora appeared to hold her cousin responsible for her children’s deaths. She stated:
“I just left my cousin with my children.” She left my door unlocked. My baby boy, my oldest baby boy, is the only one who is present and alive. She left, she left them, she left them alone in the house. She left them here, and they aren’t…”
Lamora told the dispatcher she found her babies dead in the stove after finally giving her location. She then blamed her sister for the death, despite previously claiming that her cousin was the babysitter. “My sister was babysitting my kids and left them dead in the house,” Lamora explained.
Lamora was charged with murder in 2018, but it is unclear whether she was imprisoned. Williams
Lamora’s family suspected her of committing the murders. “If she did what I think she did,” Brenda said, “my daughter is a sick person.” When The Atlanta Journal-Constitution asked Tabitha if she thought Williams could murder her two children, she answered emphatically, “Yes.”
Lamora was charged with murder, making a false statement, aggravated assault, and concealing a death by a grand jury. She was also charged with child cruelty because her 3-year-old son, Jameel, was present when his brothers died.
According to the medical examiner, the boys had no broken bones or signs of blunt force trauma. They were not burned, but the electric oven caused them harm. Police believe Lamora placed the children in the oven to conceal the method of murder.
There have been no further updates on the trial, and Lamora’s name does not appear in the Georgia Department of Corrections inmate search. Given the court’s concerns about her mental state, it’s likely that she was found incompetent to stand trial. If that were the case, the court would have committed her to a psychiatric facility or hospital.
The boys’ burials were paid for by local funeral homes. Jameel set up a GoFundMe account to raise funds for his children. According to the page’s description:
“Jameel Penn Jr. and London Williams will never be reunited with their brothers.” My two youngest sons will never see me again. It was all due to mental illness. I’m not the same person I used to be, but I have to be strong for [the] children I have left.”
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