GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Charges have been upgraded against a Gwinnett County mother accused in connection to the death of her daughter.
Jail records show 27-year-old Brittany Hall is now being charged with malice murder and felony murder. She was initially charged with concealing the death of her daughter, 8-year-old Amari Hall. The girl's body was found near a hotel in Peachtree corners Tuesday around 10:45 a.m.
Hall's domestic partner, 29-year-old Celeste Owens, is also charged with felony murder and malice murder in connection to Amari's death.
Warrants for Owens allege that Amari was hit in the head several times on Friday, Nov. 19 and that Owens did "conceal the death of Amari Hall by placing her in trash bags and dumping her body."
Police said the child, who had autism, was reported missing early Sunday morning at the HomeTowne Studios located at 7049 Jimmy Carter Boulevard in the Peachtree Corners area. She and her mother had been staying at the hotel for nearly three months.
On Tuesday, Gwinnett Police Chief J.D. McClure said they compared what they were told by the mom and Owens with the evidence in the case and determined their statements were false.
Hall is also accused of physically abusing her three children in an incident caught on video, records show. The warrants said the mother slapped one child several times on the back and face, going as far as punching and kicking the child.
Records from the Georgia Department of Human Services (DHS) Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) showed Hall had been previously investigated by their agency in 2015 and 2017. Additionally, a report received in 2021 "contained no allegations of abuse or neglect," they said in a statement.
Police said Hall's other children appear to be OK and are now in the care of DFCS.