Authorities say a 6-year-old’s call for help brought relatives and then deputies to the Spartanburg County home.
SPARTANBURG COUNTY, S.C. — The investigation that now includes attempted-murder and weapons charges against a South Carolina mother began when her 6-year-old son contacted his grandmother because he and his younger sibling were alone and hungry, according to authorities.
That call led to a welfare check on Sept. 26 at a home in the 1400 block of Bud Arthur Bridge Road, where deputies found the 6-year-old and a 3-year-old sibling injured and unattended. Investigators later accused their mother, Taylor Gosnell, 35, of attacking both children during the overnight hours with a knife and a blunt object. The children survived after extensive hospital treatment and, according to an October update from the sheriff’s office, have since been released into protective custody. Gosnell faces two counts of attempted murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. The accusations remain unproven.
The welfare check provides the clearest public account of how the children were discovered. The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office said the older child reached his grandmother and reported that his mother was not home and that the children were hungry. The grandmother then made arrangements to go to the residence with another adult. Deputies were called, and officers reached the property shortly after 2:30 p.m. Investigators said both children were inside without an adult and had injuries that appeared to have been caused by a knife. The sheriff’s office has not released a complete minute-by-minute account of how long the children had been alone.
Emergency medical care became the first priority. Both children were transported to Spartanburg Regional Medical Center before later receiving further treatment in Greenville, according to local reports. Authorities initially said they were in stable condition and expected to recover, but prosecutors also described particularly serious injuries to the older child. The 7th Circuit Solicitor’s Office said damage to his arm was severe enough that doctors were considering the possibility of amputation. Later reporting said both children received continued surgical care, including nerve grafts. No reliable public report reviewed for this article confirms that the arm was ultimately amputated.
Only after the children were receiving treatment did the public account of the alleged violence become clearer. Investigators said they believe the assault occurred during the night before the welfare check. A sheriff’s office spokesman later estimated that the children sustained about 50 wounds between them. Prosecutors said during bond proceedings that some injuries reached bone. Those details illustrate the seriousness of the charges, but they remain allegations presented by law enforcement and prosecutors rather than findings made by a jury.
The condition of the residence also became part of the investigation. Deputies and prosecutors said televisions and mirrors were shattered inside the home. Law enforcement described the interior as heavily disturbed. Investigators obtained warrants alleging that Gosnell used a knife and a blunt object during the attack. Authorities have not publicly released a complete inventory of evidence or explained which physical items will be introduced if the case goes to trial. They also have not announced a confirmed motive for the alleged assaults.
Gosnell was not at the residence when deputies first found the children, according to the sheriff’s office. She returned while investigators were still there. Deputies said her speech and behavior caused concern about her immediate condition, and an ambulance was called to take her for a medical evaluation. Authorities said she attempted to leave the ambulance and was restrained. After she was medically cleared, investigators sought to interview her, but the sheriff’s office said no interview occurred because Gosnell requested a lawyer. She was later booked into the county detention facility.
The legal response unfolded in stages. Gosnell was first charged with two counts of attempted murder, one tied to each child. At a bond hearing, a judge declined to release her on those charges. Deputies later signed two additional warrants for possession of a weapon during a violent crime. The sheriff’s office has continued to describe the matter as an active investigation. None of the charges amounts to a conviction, and the prosecution must establish its case through the court process.
The children’s circumstances changed substantially in the weeks after deputies entered the home. Initial reports focused on their continued hospitalization, the severity of their injuries and the possibility that the older child could lose part or all of an arm. By Sept. 30, the sheriff’s office said the children had undergone nerve graft procedures and were expected to be discharged in the coming days. On Oct. 13, FOX Carolina reported that the sheriff’s office said both children had left the hospital the previous week and were in the custody of the Department of Social Services. Officials also said continued medical care would be necessary.
The October update added a family voice to a case that had previously been described mainly through police reports and court proceedings. The older child’s paternal grandmother publicly identified him as Dawson and told FOX Carolina she had been following his recovery. She described him as a loving child and a protective older brother. Her belief that he tried to shield his younger sibling during the incident was a family member’s interpretation and has not been established by investigators as a confirmed part of the case. She also said the boy had experienced significant health problems and surgeries earlier in childhood.
Authorities have been more limited in what they have said about Gosnell’s state of mind. Deputies reported that she appeared distressed and spoke about experiencing visions when she returned to the residence. Those observations prompted the medical evaluation. Public reporting has also described social-media posts attributed to her before the incident, but the sheriff’s office has not announced a diagnosis or concluded that a mental-health condition caused the alleged violence. Investigators have likewise not publicly identified another motive. Any assessment of criminal responsibility will depend on evidence presented through the legal process, not speculation about her behavior.
Separate court-record reporting showed that Gosnell already faced two pending child-endangerment-related counts from a February 2024 arrest and was on bond in that matter when the September case occurred. Authorities have released little information about the older allegations. Because those charges also remain unresolved, they cannot be treated as proof that Gosnell previously harmed a child. Their significance to the current prosecution, if any, will be determined by the courts under applicable evidentiary rules.
The welfare-check call remains a central fact in the public timeline because it brought attention to children who investigators say had been injured hours earlier. What happened before that call, why the alleged attack occurred and what medical effects the children will face over the long term have not all been publicly established. The latest local follow-up reviewed for this story listed Gosnell’s next court appearance for Nov. 19, while both children remained outside her custody and the criminal investigation continued.
Author note: Last updated November 9, 2026.