A 14-year-old Mississippi girl has been charged as an adult in the alleged murder of her mother, a high school math teacher, and the attempted murder of her stepfather, according to local authorities. The teenager, Carly Madison Gregg, is accused of fatally shooting her mother, 40-year-old Ashley Smylie, at their home in Brandon, near the state capital of Jackson, on Tuesday evening.
Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey stated that Gregg also shot her stepfather in the arm. However, he managed to wrestle the gun away from her and survived the attack. Following the incident, Gregg reportedly fled the scene by jumping over a fence. Authorities tracked her movements by helicopter and apprehended her approximately 30 minutes after they were first alerted to the violent incident.
The stepfather, who survived the attack, reportedly told deputies that he arrived home to discover that Smylie had been fatally shot and that his stepdaughter was in possession of the murder weapon, a pistol. This information was reported by local ABC affiliate WAPT.
The motive behind the shooting remains unclear. However, reports have identified the deceased, Ashley Smylie, as a seasoned teacher who most recently taught at the same school Gregg attended, Northwest Rankin High School. Smylie was recognized for her dedication to teaching and was awarded the “Teacher of the Month” in 2022, according to the Vicksburg Daily News.
The Rankin County Sheriff’s Office, which is now investigating this shocking murder, has recently been in the news for unrelated reasons. Five former deputies from the department’s “Goon Squad” are currently facing disciplinary action for the racially motivated torture of two Black men.