Locklyn McGuire, 2, was killed in a dog mauling in Oklahoma City on Nov. 18, 2025.

The parents of an Oklahoma toddler who was killed by one of the family's dogs in November are now charged with first-degree murder.

Both parents remain in custody on a $1 million bond. With the first-degree murder charge, if found guilty, they are potentially facing a life sentence or life without the possibility of parole for the death of Locklyn McGuire, 2.

According to a news release from Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna, the child's parents, Darci Lambert, 24, and Jorden McGuire, 34, initially charged with second-degree murder, now face charges of first-degree murder and two counts of animal cruelty.

"This is an unspeakably tragic case," Behenna said. "Lambert and McGuire's complete disregard for the health, safety and welfare of their child and their failure to protect her despite knowing she was at risk, led to her death."

On Nov. 18, officers responded to the family's home in Oklahoma City just after 11:30 p.m., where Darci Lambert told the responding officer, "my daughter got ate by the pit," and Jorden McGuire instructed the officer to shoot the dog, court documents say. McGuire has been legally referred to as both Jorden and Jordan McGuire.

Inside the house, police report that they found the deceased child, who had been mauled by one of the family's four dogs.

According to an arrest affidavit, the father put Locklyn to bed around 7:30 p.m. in her room with one of the family's dogs, a black pit bull. The door to Locklyn's room had toddler locks on both sides of the door, which would have prevented the child from leaving the room, documents state. The father told police that the dog was kept in the toddler's room because it would fight one of the family's other dogs, attempting to attack its neck, according to court documents.

The night of the incident, Jorden McGuire told police he checked on Locklyn around 8:45 p.m., and he saw her asleep in her bed with the dog sleeping at the foot of the mattress, according to court documents.

Around 10:30 p.m., the mother returned home from work and let one of the other dogs outside. At that time, she told police that she heard sounds of labored breathing coming from Locklyn's room, according to court documents.

Lambert later entered the room and found the toddler deceased, documents state. It's unclear how much time elapsed between when Lambert first reported hearing noises in Locklyn's room and when she entered the toddler's room.

According to the arrest affidavit, Locklyn had been attacked by the same pit bull on Nov. 6. She was taken to OU Children's Hospital and needed plastic surgery to correct injuries to both her ears.

At the time, the Oklahoma Department of Human Services was contacted and an investigation was initiated. OKDHS did not remove Locklyn from the home, and OKCPD and OKC Animal Welfare were not contacted, court documents state.

Because of these incidents, detectives allege that Darci Lambert and Jorden McGuire "maliciously failed to protect their child and permitted her to remain in the presence of a dangerous, malnourished dog, fully aware of the serious risk of harm."

On Nov. 21, Oklahoma City police arrested the parents on complaints of second-degree murder. No defense attorneys for McGuire or Lambert were listed in court records to be reached for comment.

Following their arrests, Oklahoma City Animal Welfare removed four dogs from the residence, three of which were malnourished, and two bearded dragons.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Parents charged with murder in Oklahoma toddler's dog mauling death

Reporting by Josh Kelly, The Oklahoman / Oklahoman

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