Mother charged with murder in daughter’s death

A Dixon woman is charged with murder after her teenage daughter died from a drug overdose.

According to the Maries County Sheriff, 49-year-old Starletta Blevins-Moore gave her 16-year-old daughter a controlled substance on December 24, 2014. The daughter then overdosed and died.

While investigating Blevins-Moore’s home in Dixon, deputies reported finding unspecified controlled substances and drug paraphernalia. A 10-year-old child at the home has been placed in the care of child services because of what deputies described as an “enormous amount of drug use…inside the residence and the unsanitary conditions of the residence.”

A statement on the Maries County Sheriff’s office’s Facebook page says this is not the first overdose-related death in the family. A 15-year-old girl and sister to the victim reportedly died of an overdose as well.

While serving the arrest warrant for Blevins-Moore, deputies found more drugs and paraphernalia at the home. They arrested Ashley Mize, 24, and Scottie Pierce, 26; Mize had an outstanding Pulaski County warrant for possession of a controlled substance.

Maries County Sheriff Chris Heitman said Blevins-Moore has ten children. Two of them have died from prescription overdose.

He said when they found Kaylynn Moore, it was apparent she had died from an accidental overdose.

“Ultimately, what the mom did was provided the daughter the drugs and now she’s dead,” said Sheriff Heitman.

He also said it was not uncommon for she and her daughter to do drugs together.

“We get out there last night and guess what? There’s still drug paraphernalia out there, they’re still snorting pills, there’s still lines on the table. The death of her daughter did not stop what was going on in that house,” said Heitman.

He also said when they found her daughter dead on Christmas Eve, Blevins-Moore was nowhere to be found.

“We looked everywhere and it was late that evening before we ever talked to her.”

Heitman expects more charges to come down on Blevins-Moore.

Not only was she supplying drugs to her daughter, but the Sheriff said Blevins-Moore allowed her to date a 23-year-old, which in Missouri is statutory rape.

There was also a 10-year-old child of Blevins-Moore in the home at the time of the overdose.

Heitman said she is now staying with a family member.