Alabama Woman Indicted for Her Unborn Child’s Death After She Was Shot in the Stomach

An Alabama woman whose unborn child died as a result of a shooting last year has been arrested on manslaughter charges in connection with her baby’s death, while the alleged shooter has had charges against her dropped, AL.com reports. 

Marshae Jones, 27, was reportedly taken into custody Wednesday after a Jefferson County grand jury handed down the indictment. The charges come six months after Jones, who was five months pregnant at the time, was shot in the stomach outside a Dollar General in Pleasant Grove during an altercation with another woman that police said focused on the unborn child's father.

Jones was hospitalized but the baby did not make it.

In the aftermath of the Dec. 4, 2018 shooting, police have argued it was Jones’ actions that sparked the shooting and ultimately led to her baby’s death. 

The alleged shooter, Ebony Jemison, was also initially charged with manslaughter but the charges were dropped when a grand jury failed to indict her. 

“It was the mother of the child who initiated and continued the fight which resulted in the death of her own unborn baby,” Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid was quoted as saying after the shooting. “The investigation showed that the only true victim in this was the unborn baby.” 

“When a 5-month pregnant woman initiates a fight and attacks another person, I believe some responsibility lies with her as to any injury to her unborn child,” Reid said.

Jones was due to be taken to a Jefferson County jail and held on a $50,000 bond on Wednesday night.