A 15-year-old girl shot her mother in the face before casually playing with her pet dogs beside the body, as captured on harrowing CCTV footage from their Mississippi home. Prosecutors revealed the attack stemmed from the mother learning about her daughter’s cannabis use from a friend.
The Fatal Shooting
On March 19, 2024, Carly Madison Gregg paced through the family home, hiding a weapon behind her back. Footage shows the gunfire crack, followed by her mother, 40-year-old secondary school maths teacher Ashley Smylie, collapsing after being shot in the face.
After the killing, Gregg returned to the kitchen as if unaffected, then messaged on her phone and frolicked with her dogs near the corpse.
Attack on Stepfather
When stepfather Heath Smylie arrived home, Gregg fired at him. He wrestled the gun away and called emergency services, stating, “She killed her mom.” In his testimony, Smylie described how “the gun went off in my face before the door was open.”
Trial and Verdict
During the five-day trial, jurors viewed the shocking evidence. The defense argued Gregg suffered a mental health breakdown, with attorney Kevin Camp urging a not guilty by reason of insanity verdict: “She doesn’t know what was going on at that time.”
Rankin County District Attorney Bubba Bramlett countered, “Carly Gregg is evil and that’s not easy to say, but the truth of the matter is that sometimes evil comes in young packages.” Prosecutor Kathryn Newman reenacted Gregg’s words: “I put three in my mom and I got three – I got three more waiting for my stepdad. You think that sound like an insane person? No.”
Gregg wept in court as the jury convicted her on all counts after two hours of deliberation, sentencing her to life imprisonment without parole.
Appeal Efforts
The defense filed an appeal, citing a rushed trial schedule—indictment two months after the incident and trial within six months. Attorney James Murphy described it as an “unjust outcome” due to “mistakes,” including statutory and constitutional errors that tainted proceedings.
The legal team highlighted the “rocket docket” pace as extraordinary for a case requiring extensive medical records, evaluations, and background review. They petitioned for oral arguments before the state supreme court to overturn the conviction or remand for new proceedings.
