Jefferson County prosecutors say they have not yet made a decision whether they will prosecute the woman who is charged in the death of her unborn child after the woman was shot during a fight.
Marshae Jones, 27, was indicted by a Jefferson County Bessemer Cutoff grand jury in April and arrested this week on a felony manslaughter charge.
Jones was five months pregnant when lawmen say she initiated a fight with another woman in December 2018. That woman, Ebony Jemison, shot Jones, who was five months pregnant at the time. The fetus did not survive.
Cutoff District Attorney Lynneice Washington, the first African-American female district attorney in the state, is out of the country. Chief Assistant District Attorney Valerie Hicks Powe late Thursday night issued a statement about the case.
“Foremost, it should be state this is a truly tragic case resulting in the death of an unborn child. We feel sympathy for the families involved, including Mr. Jones, who lost her unborn child,’’ Powe said. “The fact that this tragedy was 100 percent avoidable makes this case even more disheartening.”
The shooting happened about noon on Tuesday Dec. 4, 2018 outside Dollar General on Park Road, said Pleasant Grove police Lt. Danny Reid. Officers were dispatched to the scene on a report of someone shot but arrived to find that the victim – later identified as Jones - had been driven to Fairfield. Police and paramedics found Jones at a Fairfield convenience store. From Fairfield, Jones was taken to UAB Hospital where she underwent surgery.
Jemison was taken into custody and charged with manslaughter.
According to authorities, Jones was the aggressor in the dispute that day and continued to press the fight even after Jemison had gotten into her vehicle to try to get away. It was then that Jemison got hold of a gun and fired a shot at Jones to stop the attack.
“Unfortunately, some groups have attempted to tie this case to the anti-abortion law recent passed by the (state) legislature,’’ Powe said. “This 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.”
Powe pointed out that it was the grand jury, after looking at the facts presented by the investigation law enforcement agency, which made the decision to bring charges against Jones. “In fact, the actions of both Ms. Jones and the shooter, Ebony Jemison, were presented to the grand jury at the same time,’’ she said. “The grand jury, based on the facts presented, determined that Ms. Jemison acted in self-defense and did not warrant charges against her, and that Ms. Jones should face charges for her actions resulting the death of unborn child.”
As Powe told AL.com earlier Thursday, she reiterated that the case has not been handled any differently than the way any other felony case is handled.