Former Hampton woman lied about kid’s cancer, cops say

Authorities in Cass County say a former Hampton woman conned an entire community into donating thousands of dollars and other gifts when she lied about her daughter having cancer.

     Leatha (Carr) Slauson, 30, of Atlantic, was arrested on charges of child endangerment Aug. 21 after investigators discovered her five-year-old daughter was not terminally ill as previously alleged. For the past year Slauson claimed her daughter, Riley, was battling colorectal cancer which she said had spread to the child’s liver and lymph nodes. After receiving a tip, investigators say they found no such medical evidence.

     Slauson, a 2002 graduate of Hampton-Dumont High School, was charged with two counts of Child Endangerment Causing Bodily Injury, ten counts of Unlawful Possession of a Prescription Drug and one count of Drug Distribution to Person Under 18, according to online court records. She is being held in Cass County Jail on a $35,000 cash assurity bond.

    Read the full article in the Sept. 3 edition of the Hampton Chronicle.