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| Marshae Jones, indicted on manslaughter charges involving the shooting death of her unborn child, is shown in this booking photo in Birmingham, Alabama |
Eight weeks after an Alabama grand jury indicted a woman for manslaughter over the loss of her fetus in a shooting she was accused of provoking, a state district attorneyโs office said on Friday it was still considering whether to prosecute the case.
Marshae Jones, 28, of Birmingham, intentionally caused the death of her โunborn baby Jonesโ on Dec. 4, 2018, by โinitiating a fight knowing she was five months pregnant,โ according to the two-page indictment returned against her on May 1.
Quoting from the stateโs definition of manslaughter, the indictment goes on to assert that โsaid deathโ occurred due to a โsudden heat of passion caused by provocation recognized by law, and before a reasonable time for the passion to cool and for reason to reassert itself.โ
The altercation and shooting that Jones allegedly instigated occurred in the town of Pleasant Grove, just west of Birmingham, and grew out of a quarrel over who was the father of her baby, local media reported.
The Jefferson County grand jury reached its conclusion after examining the actions of both the would-be mother who was shot and the woman who opened fire on her, Ebony Jemison, the local district attorneyโs office said in a statement about the case.
The grand jury, according to the DAโs office, determined that Jemison had โacted in self-defence and did not warrant charges against her, and that Ms. Jones should face charges for her actions resulting in the death of her unborn child.โ
However, the DAโs office said it was still evaluating the case to decide whether โto prosecute it as a manslaughter case, reduce it to a lesser charge or not to prosecute it.โ
Court records show Jones was arrested nine days after the shooting and remains jailed on a $50,000 bond.
The Yellowhammer Fund, an Alabama-based advocacy group that provides financial assistance to women seeking abortions in the state, has decried Jonesโ arrest.
The indictment came to public attention weeks after Alabama enacted the nationโs strictest anti-abortion law on the books, banning women from terminating a pregnancy in almost all instances, including cases of rape and incest.
The district attorneyโs office acknowledged that some groups โhave attempted to tie this case to the anti-abortion law,โ which was signed into law on May 15.
โThis case predates the passage of the legislation, and we must point out the new law played no role in the consideration of the grand jury,โ the D.A.โs statement said.
REUTERS
