MARTINSVILLE – The Morgan County Coroner’s Office completed the autopsy for Oaklee Snow, whose body was found hidden in a dresser drawer at an abandoned home near Morgantown.
The coroner has classified the death of 1-year-old Oaklee Snow who died just shy of her second birthday, as a “homicide of unspecified means”.
Madison Marshall and her boyfriend Roan Waters, are accused of abducting Oaklee Mae Snow and her baby brother Coleton from their father Zack Snow’s home in Cromwell, Oklahoma on January 19, 2023.
The pair reportedly abandoned Oaklee’s brother, 7-month-old brother Coleton, in an Indianapolis drug house in February where family members recovered the baby boy and reported his abandonment to the Indiana Department of Child Services.
According to court records a witness reportedly saw 22-year-old Marshall and Waters leaving the Indianapolis drug house with “what looked like a child wrapped in a blanket”. The witness told police, the child did not appear to be moving, talking, or crying.
Waters told his family that Oaklee had fallen in an accident, and they had to take her to the hospital emergency room.
Marshall told police that her boyfriend, Roan Waters, killed the young girl and hid her body in a dresser in an abandoned Morgantown home.
According to court records, investigators say a “hysterical and sobbing” Marshall led officers to an abandoned home in the outskirts of Morgantown where the remains of a child were found in the bottom of a dresser drawer. The remains were badly decomposed but appeared to be a blonde-haired female toddler.
“As a parent, we have a duty to protect our children. Not only did these two individuals fail to live up to that responsibility, but the allegations in the probable cause affidavit indicate that Oaklee suffered a horrible death and an abandonment that diminished the dignity that any child deserves,” said Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears, in a written statement.
Madison Marshall faces two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, neglect of a dependent resulting in serious injury, and assisting a criminal in a murder, two counts of neglect of a dependent endangerment, neglect of a dependent abandonment, or cruelly confine the dependent. Her trial is scheduled on July 10, 2023, at 8:30 a.m.
Roan Waters is facing charges of murder, two counts of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, neglect of a dependent resulting in serious injury, battery resulting in bodily injury to a person under the age of 14, and three counts of neglect of a dependent. His jury trial is scheduled for October 2, 2023.
Marshall told police that he would frequently abuse the toddler and had often hit the girl and even “choked her out” on occasion. He would reportedly beat her for things as simple as “holding a fork wrong,” according to Marshall. Marshall allegedly told police that the abuse was so bad that Oaklee wouldn’t eat around Waters. Marshall told police if she tried to prevent the abuse, Waters would turn his abuse toward her.
According to court documents, Oaklee Snow likely died on Feb. 9, 2023. Marshall told police Waters woke to Oaklee crying on that day at the house on Albany Street in Indianapolis because Oaklee was hungry. Marshall told police Waters threw Oaklee on the floor and the girl’s head hit the floor leaving a bruise. Waters allegedly wanted Oaklee to bounce a large rubber ball, but the ball was too big for Oaklee to bounce. Waters said she then heard shouting and saw Waters holding Oaklee and the child was struggling to breathe.
Marshall stated she knew her child was dying and attempted to call 911 but Waters allegedly slapped the phone from her hand. He then wrapped the child’s body in a blanket and the couple left the home. Marshall said she held her child’s dead body on her lap while the couple drove to Morgantown where Waters disposed of Oaklee’s body.
Marshall and Waters were arrested in North Carolina and transported back to Indiana.
