Investigators said Shronta Marie Clifton, 27, shot a pregnant woman in the stomach after the two got into an argument on the evening of Jan. 31.
Emergency personnel transported the victim, also 27, to Regional Medical Center that night for surgery. Later, police learned that the woman had been in her first trimester of pregnancy but had miscarried after the shooting.
Lt. Fred Forsythe said officers are now looking into whether the gunshot wound caused the miscarriage, something that would turn the case into the department’s first homicide investigation of the year.
If that happens, Clifton’s first-degree assault charge would likely be upgraded to murder, the lieutenant said.
In Alabama, criminal code defines a homicide victim as “a human being, including an unborn child in utero at any stage of development, regardless of viability.”
Anniston Sgt. Josh Doggrell said Clifton and the victim both lived at Constantine Homes at the time of the shooting.
Clifton was in custody at the Calhoun County Jail Tuesday. An online inmate database showed that Clifton was under an “active hold” Tuesday evening, meaning she can’t bond out of jail.
The Calhoun County District Attorney’s Office is helping Anniston police investigate the case.
Contact Star Staff Writer Cameron Steele at 256-235-3562.
