Alabama Woman Charged with Manslaughter For Starting a Fight that Led to the Death of HER Unborn Bab
Talk about a crazy twist of events! An Alabama woman has been charged with manslaughter for provoking, and escalating, an argument that led to the death of her own unborn baby.
27-year-old Marshae Jones (pictured left) got into a verbal altercation with another woman back in December of 2018. Jones, who was 5 months pregnant at the time, approached 23-year-old Ebony Jemison outside of a Dollar General store and instigated an argument allegedly over the child's father.
Witnesses say that Jones continued to go after Jemison which resulted in Jemison firing a gun, striking Jones. Jones was taken Fairfield to UAB Hospital before police arrived. When police got to the hospital they found that Jones has suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach and that her baby hadn't survived.
According to AL.com Jemison (pictured right) will NOT face any charges because she was defending herself.
“The investigation showed that the only true victim in this was the unborn baby,’’ Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid said at the time of the shooting. “It was the mother of the child who initiated and continued the fight which resulted in the death of her own unborn baby.”
“She had no choice in being brought unnecessarily into a fight where she was relying on her mother for protection."
The 5-month fetus was "dependent on its mother to try to keep it from harm, and she shouldn’t seek out unnecessary physical altercations,” Reid added."
Jones arrest has sparked the interest of several women's rights organizations. The Yellowhammer Fund, a National Network of Abortion Funds which helps women access abortion services, has released a statement in support of Jones saying:
“The state of Alabama has proven yet again that the moment a person becomes pregnant their sole responsibility is to produce a live, healthy baby and that it considers any action a pregnant person takes that might impede in that live birth to be a criminal act,’’ Executive Director Amanda Reyes said in the statement.“
“Today, Marshae Jones is being charged with manslaughter for being pregnant and getting shot while engaging in an altercation with a person who had a gun. Tomorrow, it will be another black woman, maybe for having a drink while pregnant. And after that, another, for not obtaining adequate prenatal care,” Reyes said.
“We commit ourselves to making sure that Marshae is released from jail on bond, assisting with her legal representation, and working to ensure that she gets justice for the multiple attacks that she has endured,’’ Reyes said.
Jones will be transferred to the Jefferson County Jail where she will be held on $50,000 bond.
In your opinion, do you think Jones needs to carry the full weight of this punishment or should Jemison share in part?
