UPDATE: Chatham County mother Jennifer Cooper was indicted on child murder charges on October 27, 2023, after the death of her infant, Randy William Taylor Jr. on August 3, 2023. The counts listed in the indictment include murder in the second degree, cruelty to children in the second degree and possession of a schedule I controlled substance.

ORIGINAL VIDEO: Jennifer Cooper pleads not guilty to infant’s murder:

CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WSAV) – The mother who woke up from her sleep to her infant child dead in a couch cushion pleaded not guilty in court on Thursday.

Jennifer Cooper, 33, is facing charges of murder, possession of a controlled substance and drug-related objects.

The infant was found dead around 10:40 p.m. on Aug. 3, 2023, at a home on the 100 block of Quacco Road, according to Chatham County Police.

Both the child and the mother tested positive for methamphetamine. Det. Randall Noble testified in court that the child had visible injuries.

“While inspecting the baby, Det. [Marian] Lemmons observed suspicious injuries to the baby’s neck, back, swelling near the eyes, blood on the baby’s face, and then an indention on top of the head of the baby,” Noble said.

News 3 learned in court that Cooper had another child who died in August 2022 on that same couch from infant death syndrome. She was not charged with that first child’s death.

This case now moves to the Chatham County Superior Court.