WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Inside the Whitehall-area motel room where two people were found dead alongside their severely dehydrated but surviving 6-month-old daughter, authorities say they also found drug paraphernalia.
Autopsies were performed Saturday on Jessica Bramer, 26, of Grand Rapids and Christian Reed, 28, of Marne, Michigan State Police said. An immediate cause of death was not identified and it will take at least 30 days for toxicology results to come back.
Their daughter Skylah was listed in critical condition at Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids Saturday, but she was doing better and is expected to make a full recovery. It’s not yet clear who will take custody of her once she’s released from the hospital.
Bramer and Reed’s bodies were discovered shortly before noon Friday when a state trooper was sent to the Rodeway Inn on E. Colby Street near US-31 in Whitehall Township for a welfare check.
Family members told 24 Hour News 8 that the pair and Skylah had been staying at the motel for about a week. Skylah is believed to have been alone in the room for as many as three days. Inn staff refused to answer questions Saturday about whether anyone saw anything or heard the baby crying.
Family members said Bramer and Reed had been in and out of jail. They said Skylah’s grandparents contacted Children’s Protective Services in January, worried about the baby’s safety. CPS could not be immediately reached for comment.
Police are asking anyone who came into contact with either Bramer or Reed after May 14 to contact MSP at 616.866.4411.
—24 Hour News 8′s Heather Walker contributed to this report.