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Jill Jones sentenced to 50 days, probation |
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Monday, 02 June 2008 |
A former Benton woman who previously pleaded guilty to concealing the birth of her child was sentenced by Circuit Court Judge Grisham Phillips to six years’ probation, three of which are to be supervised.
Jill Jones, 21, also was sentenced to serve 22 days at the Saline County Detention Facility, beginning Tuesday until June 25, the date of the baby’s birth.
Judge Phillips also ordered Jones to serve a week in the county jail for the first four years on the anniversary date of the baby’s birth and that she serve 100 hours of community service.
In addition, Phillips imposed a $1 fine, saying the amount was not more because he “could not and would not” place a price on the life of a baby.Prosecuting Attorney Ken Casady, who testified today, had recommended that Jones be sentenced to two years at a regional correctional facility. He said she was offered help from several people and that she chose not to accept the assistance.
After the sentence was imposed, Casady said he “thought this was a fair sentence. Judge Phillips deliberated carefully on it and accepted the points we were trying to make. I viewed this as an important case in principle. This wasn’t about ruining somebody’s reputation. It was about the fact that the state and the court in this type of case should not be in a position to wonder or to have to take the word from the defendant about what happened to an infant.”Jones had been scheduled for trial May 20, but entered her guilty plea earlier in the month.
Concealing the birth of a child is a class D felony, punishable by up to six years in prison.
Christian Helsham, 22, of Benton, reported to be the father of Jones’ baby, has admitted to authorities that he burned the body of the baby born in June 2006 to Jones. Helsham was scheduled for sentencing this afternoon in Phillips’ court.
When Jones testified today, she said she is “very remorseful” for her actions and regrets having caused pain for her family and friends. She told the judge that he would “never see me in this courtroom or any other again.”
Testifying today in Jones’ behalf were Candy Miller, a family friend; Laurie Cox, a church friend who has known Jones for several years and whose children were entrusted to Jones’ care; and Lita Gattis, a Benton High School counselor who has known Jones several years.
All testified that Jones comes from “a godly home, that she made a mistake and is remorseful.” They said she and her family have “suffered greatly” and called Jones “a good girl who panicked” because of her circumstances.
When Casady testified, he said the damage to Jones’ reputation and the pain and suffering she and her family have experienced are “consequences of her action, not punishment.”
Jones’ attorney, Bill James, said “shame, remorse and embarrassment” are sufficient punishment and he recommended a probated sentence, counseling and community service.
According to the final statement of facts obtained from the circuit clerk’s office, sometime in November 2005, Jones and Helsham conceived a child. Through December 2005 and January 2006, Jones experienced morning sickness, which reportedly was noticed by her supervisor and co-workers at Smith-Caldwell Drug Store in Benton.
Authorities said on June 25, 2006, Jones gave birth to a baby girl in the upstairs bathroom of her home on McCurdy Street in Benton. In the statement she gave to Benton police Detective Brett Carpenter at the time of her arrest in 2007, Jones said the baby was stillborn and that no other person was home or helped deliver the baby.
She sought no medical attention for herself or the baby, according to the court document. She reportedly told Carpenter that she did not call 911 or her parents because she thought if she told her parents “they would think I murdered it.” Jones also reportedly told Carpenter that she tried to revive the baby and cut the umbilical cord thinking it might help the baby breathe.
She told Carpenter that all she could think about was “what does this look like?”
The court documents also showed that, during her pregnancy, when confronted by her supervisor about whether she was pregnant, Jones denied the possibility and became emotional. After continued questioning, however, Jones acknowledged that she could, in fact, be pregnant.
Her supervisor at work provided her with the name of an adoption attorney. However, Jones was “emphatic that she was not having a baby,” the court documents state.
In the following months, Jones refused to publicly acknowledge that she was pregnant despite a change in her body size and style of clothing.
Although she denied her pregnancy to her supervisor and co-workers, Jones reportedly acknowledged it to Helsham in December 2005.
In May 2006, Jones appeared to be swollen and unhealthy, according to her co-workers and supervisor. They reportedly observed her abdomen move as if a baby kicked or shifted within her. Her supervisor again alerted her of the dangers of not receiving prenatal care and made an appointment for Jones to see a Hot Springs doctor, but Jones failed to keep the appointment.
After the birth of the child on June 25, 2006, Jones wrapped the baby in towels, put it in a trash bag and stored it in her closet until the next day, authorities reported.
Earlier that month, when approached by Patti Chester, co-owner of Smith-Caldwell, Jones had acknowledged that she was pregnant. Chester then suggested to Jones that they both talk to Jones’ mother, Janice Jones. Jones had requested that Chester give her a week to tell her mother.
However, later that night, Chester said she changed her mind and, along with Holly Friend, Jones’ supervisor, went to Jones’ home and shared their concerns with Janice Jones.
Janice Jones reported that she asked her daughter if she was pregnant and Jill Jones begged her mother not to tell her father, Phil Jones, and the rest of her family, or to make her “go before the church.”
After the birth, Jones said she met Helsham at a relative’s home in Haskell to hand over the baby.
According to Helsham’s confession, he took the baby’s body to Gentry where he burned it, scooped up the remains and threw them in a dumpster. He later told Jones that he buried the body.
Despite efforts of Carpenter and the Benton Police Department, the body was not recovered and a further search reportedly was impractical. The trash from the dump site in question reportedly is delivered to different landfills in and out of Arkansas. Scientific testing to determine whether the baby was born alive would be impossible without a body to submit for scientific testing, authorities said.
Courier staffer Melissa Walls contributed to this report. |
 |  |  |  |  | Just being with family and eating good food is the best part!!- Liz McGee Quantz (Haskell, AR)
The Mabelvale United Methodist Church in Mabelvale, AR will
be hosting a fall carnival on Sunday evening October 26th from 5 to 7pm in the
Fellowship Hall. Kids will love it, parents will too! - Roger Poole (Bryant, AR)
I make an awesome Pina Colda Cake. You buy a boxed yellow
cake mix and mix it and bake it per the instructions on the box. After you bake the
cake allow it to cool for about 15 minutes. Use the end of a wooden spoon to poke
medium size holes all in the cake. Take a can of Eagle Brand Milk and Cream of
Coconut and alternate pouring them into the holes. Place the cake in the fridge for
about one hour, remove and put Cool Whip on top, as much or as little as you like.
The cake is better if you let it sit all night in the fridge before eatting. It is
wonderful!!! - Kelly Chase (Alexander, AK)
My favorite memories of Thanksgiving were when we lived in
Tulsa, Ok. There were always folks that didn't have a place to go for the holiday-
so they wound up at our house along with most of my husband's family from Benton.
The house was packed. The Thanksgiving meal was wonderful. But the celebration
didn't end there. At night, all weekend, there were pallets spread throughout the
house and the good eats seemed to never end. And on Friday morning (after
Thanksgiving) all the females were up before dawn and Christmas shopping by 8:00
a.m. Those are memories that I will cherish forever. - Billie Loe (Texas)
I always get to make the turkey for our Thanksgiving. So
you can add more butter or flour for consistency. Wash your turkey, pat dry, take
another stick of butter and rub all over turkey. Then take with your hands and smear
the batter a little thick, all over the turkey. Once all of the turkey has the
batter on it, I will melt the another bar of butter and put it in the bottom of the
pan of my turkey. It will make a wonderful gravy to use on your turkey when done.
So, then get enough aluminum foil to make a "tent" over your turkey. Put in oven and
bake @ 375 all night. It will be so moist, the crispies are great and the gravy
makes it better. Now the flip side to this is, it will be so tender it will fall apart.
So, I do not serve as a whole turkey. I go ahead and slice up, pour some grave
over some of the sliced up turkey for those who like it and then slice up some
turkey without gravy. You will have many compliments on this. Happy Thanksgiving
and Enjoy! - Liz Johnson (Benton) We prepare a traditional Thanksgiving dinner that morning.
Then we pack it all up and travel to deer camp in South Arkansas. We serve dinner to
all those who don't have family with which to share. We'll spend the afternoon
playin' dominos, pitchin' horseshoes and just visitin'. It's a wonderful time. - Pat Stuckey (Bismarck) We invite all the family in and cook the traditional feast.
Everyone gets silly when they get full. That is entertaining. - Jim Perry (Benton) Frozen pizza - Greg Marsh (Medicine Hat) The whole family gets together and we have dinner and noon
visit for a while then go home to take naps and get ready for black friday sales! - Terrie Schulz (Benton)
My childhood memories are of the sumptuous dinners my
grandfather, Byron Yarbrough, Sr. would prepare. Family members came from all over
Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas to our home of South East Street. It was a wondeful
time I really didn't learn to appreciate until he and my grandmother passed away.
Later, my cousin Eleen Murray brought the tradition back and family members gathered
at their home near Lake Norrell. Today, it's the memories of
Thanksgivings past that I treasure. It was because of these gatherings that I came
to realize the importance of family. - David Hughes (Herndon, VA)
My favorite time of remembering Thanksgiving is when all of
my family would get together and enjoy the most wonderful feast I have ever tasted.
My mom would make at least 2 to 3 different stuffings, actually her and my sister
Tammy Parker(Schultz) would make everything. I am not quite the chef my mom and
sister are. I live now and have lived for most of my life away from home in
different states so I have tasted many other dishes. None can compare to my
mom's(Pat Brumley). But most of all it is the family being altogether and just
laughing and having fun. My husband experienced this tradition for the first time in
1999 and still to this day can not stop talking about it. His traditions were not
the same. He couldn't believe the amount of food, fun, and family we had for the
holidays. I didn't understand it because I am used to it always being that way. I am
very lucky to have the family I have. My ex-step dad (David Hughes) still treats me
and my sister like his own so I have extended family to share the holidays with too. Even if it
is just a phone call, prayer, or written. I sure so miss Benton. I was raised
there and even though I am in Hoosier state since 2001 I let everybody know I am
proud to be a Razorback. I will never be anything else. God bless everyone in
Benton and someday I hope to see you soon. - Debbie Brooks (Schultz) (Columbus, IN) |
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