COLUMBUS, Ohio — Franklin County court records state that the 48-year-old Columbus woman accused of killing 5-year-old Darnell Taylor last week allegedly suffocated him while inside their home.
According to Franklin County Municipal Court documents, Pammy Maye allegedly suffocated Darnell around 11 p.m. on Feb. 13, approximately six hours before the AMBER Alert was dispatched. Maye later admitted that after killing Darnell, she put his body in a sewer in the 1600 block of Marsdale Avenue in south Columbus, records say.
Police said Maye was taken into custody shortly before 10 p.m. on Feb. 15 in Brooklyn, Ohio.
Officers found Maye wandering in a nightgown and she told investigators where they could find Darnell's body, Columbus Division of Police Chief Elaine Bryant said. It was recovered shortly after 1 a.m. on Feb. 16.
Maye was being evaluated at a Cleveland-area hospital before being booked into the Cuyahoga County jail on Sunday. On Wednesday, she was extradited back to Franklin County where she is charged with murder, kidnapping and child endangerment.
Maye had last been seen at her home around 3 a.m. on Feb. 14, around the time her husband called 911, saying Maye had told him Darnell was no longer alive. The husband said he had searched the home before calling police and did not find the child.
According to court records, Maye held her hand over her husband’s mouth when he tried to make the 911 call, saying she “had a plan.” Maye then abruptly left the home, authorities said, and an AMBER Alert for her and the child was issued two hours later. Her vehicle was then found unoccupied around 6 a.m. on Feb. 14 in Brooklyn.
Maye had been Darnell's foster mother since May 2023. The boy’s biological family was notified about his death and Maye's arrest.