Rodney McWeay: Georgia father arrested for starving 4-year-old daughter to death, neglecting 2 other children at home

If you or anyone you know suspects child abuse, you are urged to immediately call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential and the hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA: According to authorities, a Georgia man's four-year-old daughter was so severely undernourished and neglected that at the time of her death, she had less than an ounce of water in her belly.

This startling information is just one of many that have surfaced almost a month after Treasure McWeay, 4, was declared dead at an Atlanta children's hospital on December 11.

Her father, Rodney McWeay, was then taken into custody and charged with her murder on December 21, according to Atlanta Police.

Rodney McWeay was accused of 13 other offenses

According to court documents obtained, McWeay has also been accused of 13 other offenses, including kidnapping, false imprisonment, and first- and second-degree child abuse.

Additionally, the records indicate that the alleged abuses took place between May 2021 and December 2023. Notably, in June 2022, McWeay was charged for the first time with battery family violence.

As per the police records, he had recently distanced himself from his family, and a relative claimed he was addicted to ketamine, also known as "special k".

A copy of an arrest report obtained states that two other boys in the home, ages 3 and 4, were also subjected to extreme neglect and starvation in addition to Treasure McWeay. According to the police, one of the children had autism.

In late June, Child Services rescued the children from Rodney McWeay's Atlanta home due to a complaint about the "unsatisfactory conditions" of the property, Shore News Network reported.

However, McWeay "traveled to Maryland"—the home of the children's mother Passion Mitchell within a week, according to police reports. After that, according to the police, "He stole her car and left it parked at a train station as he brought the kids back to Georgia."

Treasure McWeay's siblings were subject to child abuse

When police visited the hospital last month to check on Treasure McWeay's siblings, they discovered that the boys had contusions, bruises, and scratches on their face, chest, and back.

Additionally, they were both underweight. McWeay was the subject of complaints about child abuse and neglect going back to 2021, according to the police. Among the incidents that were allegedly reported involved him allegedly knocking out his son's tooth.

Following his alleged kidnapping of their children this summer, McWeay allegedly severed all ties with both the mother and social services. According to police, the siblings were placed under the care of their aunt while the mother traveled to Georgia from Maryland to retrieve them.

Although Treasure McWeay's .autopsy report was not immediately available, Atlanta outlet WXIA first reported on Tuesday that Treasure McWeay's weight at the time of her death was confirmed to be just 25 pounds by medical examiners. 

Healthy children of the same age typically weigh about twice that. The child's face appeared malnourished, according to police reports, and the autopsy revealed that her stomach contained just 0.5 ml, or less than an ounce, of fluid.

What does Children's Health Care data states?

"Toddlers need 4 cups of fluids every day, school-age children need 5 cups, and older children need 7-8 cups of fluids per day," according to Children's Health Care data on childhood hydration, Law&Crime stated.

According to reports, McWeay kept his sons and daughter segregated in one room and would only allow them to leave with his approval.

The Georgia Gazette stated that when police arrived at the suburban Atlanta residence on December 11, they discovered only milk and eggs that had gone bad and no other food.

The Gazette also stated that despite noting that cameras were positioned all over the house, authorities strangely did not discover a single piece of children's clothing in the house.

There were reports of some being aimed towards the kid's beds. McWeay allegedly stated in a police interview that his kids were not permitted outside and that "if his kids need something, he will take it to them."

It has also been reported that he left toys in their rooms. According to court documents, McWeay is being held without bond at the Fulton County Jail and is being represented by a public defender.

A Wednesday request for comment from Law&Crime was not promptly answered by McWeay's lawyer.

McWeay declined to appear at the Fulton County Courthouse on his first appearance, and he is scheduled to appear before Judge Ashley Drake the following week on January 11 for a pre-indictment hearing.