Beaufort, NC — A 61-year-old Newport man has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter following the death of a medically fragile woman who was left alone in an unheated camper during freezing winter weather earlier this year, the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday.
Blair Hamilton Hayes was taken into custody on Tuesday after a lengthy investigation into the February death of 47-year-old Emma Jean Teague, also of Newport. According to investigators, Hayes left Teague in a camper trailer with no heat or electricity in the Wildwood Road area, while he stayed in a local hotel. Temperatures at the time dipped into the 20s overnight.
On February 20, Hayes called emergency services after finding Teague unwell in the camper. She was taken to Carteret Health Care and later died on March 4. Her cause of death was determined to be end-stage cirrhosis of the liver, worsened by acute hypothermia from prolonged exposure to the cold.
Detectives say Teague was blind, had severe mobility issues, and was unable to care for herself. The investigation concluded that Hayes knowingly left her in unsafe and life-threatening conditions without access to heat, electricity, or assistance.
At the time of his arrest, Hayes was already facing unrelated charges in Craven County for Assault on a Female and Assault on a Disabled Individual.
He is being held without bond at the Carteret County Detention Center and is expected to make his first court appearance later this week.
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Key Points
- Newport man arrested for involuntary manslaughter in death of medically fragile woman
- Victim left alone in camper with no heat or electricity during freezing February nights
- Cause of death listed as liver failure complicated by hypothermia
A North Carolina woman froze to death in a powerless camper while the man responsible stayed in a hotel.
