Mother Found With Dead Baby In Her Trunk During A Traffic Stop

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A young mother from Alabama is now behind bars after being charged with manslaughter in the death of her baby.

Police stopped Jalesa Gaines, 23, in November 14, 2017 for driving with expired tags.

During the traffic stop, Gaines gave police officers a false identity which prompted them to ask for consent to search her vehicle. It was during that search that they made a gruesome discovery.

The body of a newborn baby boy, who appeared to be only a few days old, was found in the trunk.

The baby was wrapped in a sweater and placed inside a box.

Jalesa Gaines was then arrested and charged with abuse of a corpse and no child restraint.

The Mother was also charged with giving a false identity, driving without insurance, and driving with an expired tag.

Gaines was reportedly uncooperative with police, and has given very little information about the dead baby in her trunk.

Court documents indicate that the baby was born days before his body was recovered, on November 9.

A cause of death hasn’t been determined as yet, but authorities believe that the child was born alive. Results of an autopsy are still pending.

A grand jury recommended that the charges against Jalesa Gaines be upgraded after the investigation revealed more information…

that the baby boy was born alive.

Investigators first charged Jalesa Gaines with abuse of a corpse and failing to restrain a child, in addition to the charges stemming from the traffic violations.

Gaines offered little information about the baby or the circumstances surrounding his death. She also offered no explanation for why she was driving around with his body in her trunk.

However, investigators now believe that the child was born alive.

The body was sent to the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences for an autopsy to determine the exact cause of death and Officials say those results will be released soon.

The Mother told police she was on her way to Walmart.

When she was pulled over for driving with an expired tag, Jalesa Gaines first gave police a false identity.

Once the Officers determined that her information to be false, they asked for and received her consent to search the vehicle. It was during the search that the baby was discovered.

Gaines was then arrested and her car was impounded.

Further investigation into the death of the baby revealed enough information to convene a grand jury. On Wednesday, November 24, the grand jury recommended that the charges against Gaines be upgraded from abuse of a corpse to manslaughter.

Gaines is still not talking about the baby or circumstances surrounding his death, but prosecutors feel they have enough evidence to support the manslaughter charge.

One of the biggest obstacles investigators face now in getting to the bottom of this horrific story is Gaines herself as she’s not telling anyone what happened.

According to Jackson Police Chief Jerry Taylor, Gaines is showing signs of remorse “to a degree but not to the degree we’d expect.”

23-year-old Jalesa Gaines was pulled over during a routine traffic stop in Clarke County on November 14, 2017. Inside her car, police found the body of a deceased infant boy, wrapped in a sweater inside of a box. https://t.co/F2XXWN2SDu pic.twitter.com/hfwxIeOfD2

— AL.com (@aldotcom) January 26, 2018

Jalesa Gaines is just 23 years old, and the mother to a number of other children.

She hasn’t entered a plea yet to the upgraded charges, and it’s unclear at this time if she has a lawyer.

Officials aren’t saying much else, pending results from the autopsy.