READ: Alexander brothers assaulted in prison
A Maine father has been charged nearly a year after his adorable toddler froze to death.
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toddler → read → death
Shane McLaughlin, 37, was arrested on Wednesday for manslaughter and three counts of child endangerment in connection with the death of his 13-month-old daughter, Eleanora, according to the Maine State Police Department.
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McLaughlin → arrest → Department
Eleanora was found dead on December 28 last year.
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Eleanora → find → December
The Medical Examiner's Office ruled her cause of death to be hypothermia and concluded the manner of death was accidental.
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manner → rule → death
Despite the office's conclusion, investigators later found evidence supporting a manslaughter arrest.
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investigators → find → arrest
In the wake of his daughter's death, McLaughlin recalled the harrowing moments when he found her in an interview with local NBC affiliate WCSH.
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he → recall → affiliate
He confessed the room his children slept in was so cold he 'could see my breath.'
McLaughlin said he was using a space heater to keep it warm.
'I grabbed a package of Pop-Tarts, opened it up, and I went to wake up Eleanora, and that's when I found her dead,' he said.
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he → confess → Eleanora
'I was using an electric space heater in my bedroom between the girls' bed.
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I → use → bed
The door was open because one of the animals came into the bedroom, and I could see my breath.'
Eleanora McLaughlin was found dead on December 28, 2025.
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McLaughlin → come → December
Her cause of death was determined to be hypothermia
Eleanora was a twin and had an older brother.
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Eleanora → determine → brother
The three children lived with McLaughlin in Maine.
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children → live → Maine
Picture source: Facebook / Shane McLaughlin
Eleanora's mother, Erika, told WCSH in April that the couple was estranged and their three children were living with him in Maine while she was located in West Virginia.
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she → tell → Virginia
She said she was 'angry and upset' that her estranged husband had not been charged in connection with her daughter's death.
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husband → say → death
In a previous interview, Erika said Eleanora was a twin and a 'happy child.'
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Eleanora → say → interview
Recalling a family trip to the zoo, she said the child was 'almost walking on her own.'
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child → recall → own
Before Eleanora's death, McLaughlin appeared to post about his family on Facebook.
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McLaughlin → appear → Facebook
His profile biography reads: 'Father of 3 beautiful kids my family will always come first no matter the cost!!'
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family → read → kids
Last August, he shared a story online of another child who was found dead in Maine in her mother's vehicle.
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who → share → vehicle
McLaughlin was arrested for manslaughter and three counts of child endangerment
McLaughlin called the incident 'sickening' and condemned the parents who allegedly left their children in the car.
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who → arrest → car
After McLaughlin's arrest, Erika told local ABC affiliate WMTW that state officials told her that Eleanora was found in bed covered in urine.
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Eleanora → tell → urine
The couple's other two children have been placed in the custody of Erika's grandmother since the investigation began.
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investigation → place → grandmother
The case has gained widespread attention as State Senator Jeff Timberlake called on local officials to increase investigative standards in child deaths.
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Timberlake → gain → deaths
The couple was estranged and the children were living with McLaughlin.
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children → estrange → McLaughlin
Erika said she was was 'angry and upset' he had not been charged in connection with her daughter's death in April.
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he → say → April
Picture source: Facebook / Shane McLaughlin
He wrote in a letter to the Maine Department of Health and Human Services after Eleanora's death that the child had been 'living in a home alongside her siblings with no heat and no running water in the middle of a Maine winter.'
McLaughlin is being held at the Penobscot County Jail on $250,000 bail and is set to appear in court on Friday.
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McLaughlin → write → Friday
He has not yet entered a plea to the charges against him, and it is unclear whether he has retained an attorney.
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he → enter → attorney
The Aporia
