Carly Gregg is being tried as an adult for the shooting death of her mother, a beloved Mississippi teacher remembered as "sweet and caring soul."
A 14-year-old Mississippi girl called a friend and said "Ever seen a dead body?" not long after shooting her mother three times in the face, according to a police detective who testified during the girl's murder trial.
Carly Gregg is being tried as an adult in the March killing of her mother, high school teacher Ashley Smylie, and the attempted murder of her stepfather, Heath Smylie, in the family's suburban Jackson home
Ashley Smylie was a beloved local teacher remembered as "a loving and caring teacher who wanted the best for her students," by mourners who continue to post online remembrances of her.
Gregg is being held in lieu of $1 million bail, according to authorities. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges against her.
During her preliminary hearing last week, Rankin County Sheriff's Investigator Zachary Cotton testified that home security video showed Gregg phoning a friend minutes after her mother was shot, and telling the friend there was an "emergency" at her house.
“Carly asked her if she had ever seen a dead body before,” Cotton testified, according to local reports. When the friend arrived, the daughter "proceeded to show her deceased mother, who was in the bedroom, and showed the gun that she used to shoot her mom," Cotton told the court.
According to authorities, Gregg shot her stepfather after he arrived home, but he was able to disarm the girl, but she ran from the home. He called 911 after discovering his wife's body, investigators said.
Deputies found and arrested the girl about 30 minutes after she ran away, authorities said.
Cotton also testified that gunshots could be heard on the home's security footage. Investigators have said the woman was shot once under the chin and twice in the face.
Defense attorneys had sought a lower bail, but the judge denied that request, saying Gregg posed a “special danger to others." The court has ordered a mental health evaluation of the girl.
The inspector testified that Gregg was being treated for depression and her medication had been changed shortly before the shootings.
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