Investigators say Mason Moulding was seen behaving normally before his mother went to work and left him solely in Deavan Williams’ care.
SCOTTSVILLE, Ky. — One-year-old Mason Moulding was seen alive with his mother at a grocery store on the afternoon of July 27, according to court records. Hours later, he was unresponsive, and the man who had been left alone to care for him was giving investigators an account that police would later say did not fit the evidence.
That sequence has become a central part of the murder case against Deavan Williams, 22, the boyfriend of Mason’s mother, Alexandrae Price. Investigators say Williams acknowledged that he was Mason’s primary caregiver and the only adult supervising the child immediately before his collapse. Williams initially said he had fallen asleep while Mason consumed part of a soiled diaper and choked. Court documents later described his accounts of the events leading to the boy’s injuries as materially inconsistent.
The day had begun, according to investigators, without an obvious public sign of the emergency that would follow. Mason was at a Food Lion with Alexandrae Price earlier that afternoon, and court filings describe him as alive and behaving normally at that time. Price later left for work. Mason remained at the Cottage Drive residence with Williams. That handoff matters to investigators because it helps establish who had custody of the child during the period they are examining most closely.
By around 10 p.m., law enforcement had been called in connection with the child, who had been taken for medical care and was pronounced dead. Authorities reported suspicious trauma that included bruising and bleeding from the mouth. Police initially said little publicly beyond confirming a death investigation and announcing that two people had been taken into custody. Within a day, however, Williams and Alexandrae Price were both facing first-degree criminal-abuse charges involving a child 12 or younger.
During interviews, Williams offered the choking account that became widely reported. According to the arrest records, he told investigators he had fallen asleep while watching Mason and that the child consumed portions of a feces-contaminated diaper. Investigators did not treat that statement as a complete explanation. Court documents say Williams’ descriptions changed in material ways, while the physical investigation and preliminary medical findings raised questions about injuries that authorities did not believe were adequately explained by the reported choking episode.
The interviews also produced admissions that broadened the investigation beyond Mason’s final moments. Williams allegedly acknowledged that the child repeatedly consumed or chewed unsafe objects, including diapers and couch cushions. Authorities said he knew Mason had been handling or eating material from a dirty diaper before becoming unresponsive. Police also alleged Williams intentionally fed the toddler very spicy foods despite Alexandrae Price telling him to stop. Investigators characterized that conduct as part of a pattern of dangerous treatment rather than an isolated lapse in supervision.
The place where Mason spent much of his time became another piece of the timeline. Court documents describe a lower level with flies, spiders, heavy moisture and poor ventilation. Investigators said the house lacked running water, requiring the adults to use an outdoor hose for water and for bathing Mason. The child’s playpen was described as being in an area affected by trash, soiled diapers, animal urine and feces and other contamination. Another area used by the child was an un-air-conditioned garage cluttered with garbage and other waste.
Those conditions were known to the adults, according to statements investigators attributed to them. Alexandrae Price acknowledged flies and spiders in the living area, court filings say. Williams reportedly told investigators he was surprised Mason had not suffered from parasites because of the filth. He also described contamination in terms that indicated he understood the presence of health hazards. The statements became significant because prosecutors and police have alleged the child was repeatedly exposed to conditions the adults recognized as unsafe.
Investigators then turned to medical evidence to test the accounts they had received. Preliminary findings from the medical examiner documented multiple traumatic injuries and other signs that investigators said were concerning for child abuse. Court records say authorities viewed those findings as inconsistent with Williams’ various explanations and consistent with significant inflicted trauma requiring further investigation. The medical examiner had not completed the final report when officials provided their latest public update, leaving the final cause and manner of death unreleased.
The gap between Williams’ account and the developing evidence led investigators to seek a more serious charge. On Aug. 3, the Allen County-Scottsville Criminal Investigations Division obtained a warrant charging him with murder. A judge found probable cause based on the information presented. Police cited Williams’ sole custody of Mason during the critical period, the differing statements, his admissions about his treatment of the child, physical evidence, witness accounts and the preliminary medical findings.
Williams’ murder charge did not end the inquiry into others connected to the home. Alexandrae Price remained charged with first-degree criminal abuse. Police said she regularly left Mason in Williams’ care while she worked, and investigators alleged she allowed the child to remain in unsafe living conditions. The criminal charge against her remains an accusation and does not establish that she is legally responsible for Mason’s death. Publicly available reporting has not indicated that she faces a murder charge.
A third defendant emerged as authorities investigated the residence more broadly. Mason’s grandmother, Tina Renee Price, 51, was arrested July 31. She faces first-degree criminal abuse involving a child, a charge alleging the knowing abuse or neglect of an adult and second-degree cruelty to animals. Her arrest followed an Animal Control operation at the property that removed three dogs, 12 cats and an opossum. Police said many of the animals showed serious signs of neglect.
Authorities were also concerned about other vulnerable people linked to the Cottage Drive home. Police said multiple agencies became involved in welfare and placement issues. Local television station WNKY reported that two adult men with autism were removed from the residence and placed somewhere safe. Officials disclosed only limited information about them, emphasizing instead that the agencies involved were working to protect vulnerable people while the criminal investigation continued.
By the time Williams appeared for a preliminary hearing Aug. 12, investigators had constructed a much fuller chronology than they had released immediately after Mason’s death. They had the grocery-store sighting, the mother’s departure for work, Williams’ exclusive care of Mason, the reported choking event, statements from the adults, evidence from the home and preliminary medical findings. They were still gathering surveillance footage, interviewing witnesses, processing digital evidence and waiting for the medical examiner’s completed work.
The chronology will now become part of the evidence prosecutors may present to an Allen County grand jury. The Allen County-Scottsville Crime Task Force said Sept. 10 that the case was likely to go before the grand jury Sept. 23. Investigators said the medical examiner’s work was not yet complete, though information received so far continued to raise concerns about physical abuse and possibly other abuse.
The grand jury’s role is not to determine whether Williams or either Price is guilty. It will decide whether the evidence supports felony charges moving forward through the Kentucky court system. If charges are indicted, prosecutors would still have to prove them under the standards required in criminal court, and defendants would be able to contest the government’s evidence.
For now, the final hours described in the court record remain only part of the unanswered question surrounding Mason’s death. Investigators have not publicly released a final medical determination explaining precisely how he died, and the choking account attributed to Williams has not been accepted by police as a complete explanation. The next announced step is the expected Sept. 23 grand-jury presentation.
Author note: Last updated September 21, 2026.