Charges Dropped Against Woman Whose Fetus Died After She Was Shot in the Stomach

Prosecutors have finally dropped the ludicrous manslaughter charges against Marshae Jones, an Alabama woman who somehow found herself the defendant in a case in which someone else shot her in the stomach, causing her to miscarry.

“After viewing the facts of this case and the applicable state law I have determined that it is not in the best interest of justice to pursue prosecution of Ms. Jones on the manslaughter charge for which she was indicted by the grand jury,” Jefferson County District Attorney Lynneice Washington told reporters. “Therefore, I am dismissing this case and no further legal action will be taken against Ms. Jones in this matter.”

Washington’s decision came after a national outcry over Jones’ story, which first reported by Alabama outlets last week: In December of 2018, Jones and a 23-year-old woman named Ebony Jemison got into an altercation outside a store near Birmingham, during which Jemison allegedly drew a gun and shot Jones in the stomach while she was five months pregnant, resulting in the loss of the fetus.

While Jemison was initially charged, a jury declined to indict her, apparently agreeing with the opinion of the Pleasant Grove Police Department’s Lt. Danny Reid, who said at the time that “When a five-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.” He added that “That child is dependent on its mother to try to keep it from harm, and she shouldn’t seek out unnecessary physical altercations.”

Jones’ lawyers released a statement on Wednesday, saying they were pleased the DA “chose not to proceed with a case that was neither reasonable nor just.”

”With the dismissal of charges, the community of support that surrounded Marshae can now channel its immense passion and energy toward ensuring that what happened to Marshae won’t ever happen again,” they said.