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Girl Seen Texting Stepdad Seconds After Taking Mother’s Life For Discovering Her “Secret”
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Girl Seen Texting Stepdad Seconds After Taking Mother’s Life For Discovering Her “Secret”

Girl Seen Texting Stepdad Seconds After Taking Mother's Life For Discovering Her “Secret”Teen, 15, Charged With Homicide For Allegedly Shooting Mom Who Discovered Her ‘Secret’Teen, 15, Charged With Homicide For Taking Mother's Life After She Discovered Her “Secret”Girl Seen Texting Stepdad Seconds After Allegedly Shooting Mom Who Discovered Her ‘Secret’“She Was Terrified”: Girl, 15, Accused Of Perpetrating Mother’s Crime Faces Life Imprisonment15-Year-Old Charged With Homicide For Firing At Mother And Attempting To Hurt StepdadTeen Accused Of Ending Mother’s Life, Texted Stepdad To Lure Him Into The House And Attack HimGirl, 15, Faces Life Imprisonment After Ending Mother’s Life And Injuring StepfatherCarly Gregg, 15, Was Calm After Allegedly Using Weapon To End Her Mother’s LifeGirl Seen Texting Stepdad Seconds After Taking Mother's Life For Discovering Her “Secret”
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A 15-year-old girl is accused of fatally shooting her mother inside their home after the woman discovered her daughter’s “secret life” of marijuana use.

Carly Gregg, from Brandon, Mississippi, is on the third day of trial for the murder of her mother, 40-year-old high school teacher Ashley Smylie, on March 19, 2024.

Security camera footage shows the teen holding an object behind her back, later identified as a .357 Magnum handgun while attempting to conceal the weapon from the recording.

Highlights
  • Carly Gregg, 15, is on trial for shooting her mom, Ashley Smylie.
  • Surveillance footage captured Gregg entering her mother's bedroom with a .357 Magnum handgun before three gunshots were heard.
  • Prosecutors allege Gregg used her mother's phone to lure her stepfather home, later shooting him in the shoulder before he wrestled the gun away.

Gregg can be seen entering her mother’s bedroom before three loud bangs are heard. The bangs, presumably gunshots, were followed by Smylie’s screams, footage obtained by Law & Crime shows.

Image credits: 16 WAPT News Jackson

The 15-year-old then returned to the kitchen and started using a phone.

Prosecutors have alleged that she used her mother’s phone to lure her stepfather, Heath Smylie, to the house by texting: “When will you be home honey?,” the crime news outlet reported Tuesday (September 18). 

When Heath Smylie arrived at the home, Gregg shot him in the shoulder before he wrestled the weapon away from her.

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Prosecutors also allege that Gregg texted one of her friends, asking her to come over to the scene and claiming there had been an “emergency.”

“Have you ever seen a dead body? My mom is in there,” the then 14-year-old told her friend when she arrived, according to WLBT3

Gregg is accused of fatally shooting her mother at their home on March 19, 2024

Image credits: 16 WAPT News Jackson

She reportedly told her that she had “three more gunshots waiting” for her stepfather.

After Gregg shot Heath Smylie, both friends ran to a nearby home. Smylie called 911, and police located Gregg sitting in a field before taking her into custody.

Prosecutors accuse the teen of shooting her mother because a concerned friend had told her about Gregg’s “secret life.”

“From the testimony of a friend, he was so worried about Carly’s use of smoking marijuana, so worried about her being high, and so worried about her having these burner phones, that [Gregg’s] mom didn’t know about, that he felt compelled to tell Miss Ashley Smylie that day,” Rankin County Assistant District Attorney said Monday (September 16).

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Surveillance footage shows the teenager entering her mother’s bedroom with a handgun before three loud bangs are heard

Image credits: 16 WAPT News Jackson

After learning of her daughter’s behavior, Ashley Smylie searched Gregg’s room and found vape pens. This is when Gregg allegedly shot her mother.

On the first day of the trial, Gregg broke down into tears when the courtroom was shown footage of the Sheriff’s Office arriving at the home and discovering a crying Heath Smylie saying his wife was dead inside, as per The Post.

The teen’s stepfather took the witness stand on Tuesday (September 17) to describe the moment he found Ashley’s body and got shot.

“She was laying on her back with her arms over here and a towel covering her face,” he testified

“I knew that she had been shot; there was blood around, I’m not sure exactly where, on the right side of her face.”

The 15-year-old killed her mother after she discovered Gregg smoked marijuana and had different burner phones, one of the teen’s friends testified

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Image credits: Northwest Rankin High School

He continued: “When I opened the door to the kitchen, the gun went off in my face before the door was three or four inches wide open.

“The gun flashed in my face. It went off two more times, but my hand was on the gun after the first shot, and I twisted it from Carly.”

Gregg was “screaming out of her mind and scared” after firing the shots, Smylie recounted.  

“It was like she had seen a demon or something. She was terrified. My first thought was that there was an intruder somewhere, and she thought she was after someone else. I still, to this day, don’t even think she recognized me. Something was off.”

Prosecutors said she used her mother’s phone to text her stepfather and shoot him once he arrived at the house

Image credits: COURT TV

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Gregg has been charged as an adult with counts of murder, attempted murder, and tampering with evidence.

According to Smylie, the teen had previously been sent to an alternative school for bringing a Swiss army knife to class. 

He also testified that Gregg’s father had an extensive history of substance abuse and “was constantly doing drugs in front of her.”

Smylie said he and Gregg still talk over the phone while the 15-year-old is in solitary confinement at the Rankin County Jail.

Psychiatrist Dr. Andrew Clark diagnosed Gregg with Bipolar 2 disorder and stated that the medication she was taking had worsened her mood swings that day

Image credits: COURT TV

The teen was “screaming out of her mind and scared” after firing the shots, her stepfather testified

Psychiatrist Dr. Andrew Clark, who conducted an evaluation on Gregg, diagnosed her with Bipolar 2 disorder. The teen’s medication to treat her mental health disorder had been switched from Zoloft to Lexapro a week before the incident, but Dr. Clark said she didn’t make the switch properly.

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He further testified that the medication made her mood swings worse and that she was hearing voices the day of the shooting. 

The teenager told him that her memory went blank during the attack, and she only remembers when the deputy picked her up.

Gregg’s attorneys are planning to plead insanity after twice refusing the state’s plea deal of 40 years in prison going into the trial, SuperTalk Mississippi reported.

“She needs help and then she can become a productive citizen,” a Facebook user wrote

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Marina Urman

Marina Urman

Writer, BoredPanda staff

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Marina is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she holds a Bachelor of Social Science. In her spare time, you can find her baking, reading, or watching a docuseries. Her main areas of interest are pop culture, literature, and education.

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Marina Urman

Marina Urman

Writer, BoredPanda staff

Marina is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she holds a Bachelor of Social Science. In her spare time, you can find her baking, reading, or watching a docuseries. Her main areas of interest are pop culture, literature, and education.

Ugnė Lazauskaitė

Ugnė Lazauskaitė

Author, BoredPanda staff

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I am employed as a Visual Editor in the news team. I make sure you have the best pictures near the most interesting text. In general all day I am looking at all you favourite celebrities facies and I am geting payed for it!

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Ugnė Lazauskaitė

Ugnė Lazauskaitė

Author, BoredPanda staff

I am employed as a Visual Editor in the news team. I make sure you have the best pictures near the most interesting text. In general all day I am looking at all you favourite celebrities facies and I am geting payed for it!

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Bec
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

She is a child (your brain isn't fully developed at 15) and she has a mental health disorder and she had recent prescription change. It's convenient for people to assume that only a psychopath or sociopath could murder a loved one but we are all one chemical imbalance from snapping

Load More Replies...
CBolt
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So, she knows the bedroom has surveillance cameras (what that's about?) & on the video she's seen trying to conceal the gun from the camera by putting it behind her back. But, hey, you have to bring the gun out in front to shoot (unless you've got some mad marksmanship skills & can do trick shooting from behind your back. The article only said she could be seen trying to conceal the gun, then the shots were heard, but doesn't say the video shows the actual shooting. The only thing I can think of is that she managed to get somewhere in the room where she was out of view of the camera. Interesting that the stepfather talks on the phone with her while she's in solitary confinement - what on Earth would those conversations be like & why is he doing it? Is a really good man, knows she's mentally ill, & feels sorry for her? Wonder if he's paying her legal bills or if she has a public defender - the article refers only to "her attorneys." Off to Google these & many other mysteries.

Natasha Clark
Community Member
1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To be clear since not many point this out, guns should NOT be easily accessible to kids... at all times.

Kerry Fletcher
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Keep having those guns America. Don't let people have free healthcare or abortions but definitely have more guns.

tori Ohno
Community Member
1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you take guns away from responsible owners like me, you leave nothing but irresponsible owners, aka criminals in possession. You can buy one from the same person you buy your d***s from. Illegal d***s BTW. Making guns illegal won't solve the problem. Getting rid of the mental illness, and the need to be a "star" after you kill innocent people is what we need to get rid of. America has a crime, d**g, and mental health problem. I know because I live here. I live in a secluded house, and I'll never give up my personal protection because of psycho kids like this little nutbar in the story.

Load More Replies...
Bill Bixby
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a tough one for me. Someone very close to me grew up with a mom that is bipolar and he has the most awful stories about her lapses growing up and now into adulthood. There is no rational thinking happening and they can very much harm themselves or others when in a manic state. It is a constant cycle of her being on meds and doing ok, then her going off meds insisting she is ok and then lapsing. Or the meds not having the same effect anymore and lapsing. Over and over again. Knowing someone personally like this makes you empathetic and wanting to help, but when the person is really that much of a potential danger to society, what is the right course of action? Potentially a ticking bomb waiting to go off if not properly medicated, and there is no formula for medicating. It is all trial and error. Such an awful condition in every way.

Nikki Angulo
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have a friend who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Not sure if what he did happened before diagnosis or just before he was on the right meds, but he robbed a gas station and left an explosive device behind luckily it was a dud (and surprisingly, as he is highly intelligent but probably more a sign of his meds being off, or he didn’t want it to go off) so no one was injured. He spent time in the psych ward of the local jail and when he got out was on probation. Now he has a family, and is trying to help his new neighbour who seems to be having similar issues. But he didn’t kill anyone either. She needs help, she needs to be on the right meds, and she does need to pay from her crimes, but maybe in a mental institution. It says a lot when stepdad still talked to her after what she did.

Meaghan Stewart
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As someone with Bipolar 2… no tf we do NOT hear voices. That is something entirely different wtf. Yes the mood swings can be and are awful at times, but not even close to Bipolar 1, let alone full-blown psychosis.

tameson
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Bipolar disorder can definitely include psychotic symptoms. Just look it up.

Load More Replies...
Bec
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

She is a child (your brain isn't fully developed at 15) and she has a mental health disorder and she had recent prescription change. It's convenient for people to assume that only a psychopath or sociopath could murder a loved one but we are all one chemical imbalance from snapping

Load More Replies...
CBolt
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

So, she knows the bedroom has surveillance cameras (what that's about?) & on the video she's seen trying to conceal the gun from the camera by putting it behind her back. But, hey, you have to bring the gun out in front to shoot (unless you've got some mad marksmanship skills & can do trick shooting from behind your back. The article only said she could be seen trying to conceal the gun, then the shots were heard, but doesn't say the video shows the actual shooting. The only thing I can think of is that she managed to get somewhere in the room where she was out of view of the camera. Interesting that the stepfather talks on the phone with her while she's in solitary confinement - what on Earth would those conversations be like & why is he doing it? Is a really good man, knows she's mentally ill, & feels sorry for her? Wonder if he's paying her legal bills or if she has a public defender - the article refers only to "her attorneys." Off to Google these & many other mysteries.

Natasha Clark
Community Member
1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To be clear since not many point this out, guns should NOT be easily accessible to kids... at all times.

Kerry Fletcher
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Keep having those guns America. Don't let people have free healthcare or abortions but definitely have more guns.

tori Ohno
Community Member
1 month ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If you take guns away from responsible owners like me, you leave nothing but irresponsible owners, aka criminals in possession. You can buy one from the same person you buy your d***s from. Illegal d***s BTW. Making guns illegal won't solve the problem. Getting rid of the mental illness, and the need to be a "star" after you kill innocent people is what we need to get rid of. America has a crime, d**g, and mental health problem. I know because I live here. I live in a secluded house, and I'll never give up my personal protection because of psycho kids like this little nutbar in the story.

Load More Replies...
Bill Bixby
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is a tough one for me. Someone very close to me grew up with a mom that is bipolar and he has the most awful stories about her lapses growing up and now into adulthood. There is no rational thinking happening and they can very much harm themselves or others when in a manic state. It is a constant cycle of her being on meds and doing ok, then her going off meds insisting she is ok and then lapsing. Or the meds not having the same effect anymore and lapsing. Over and over again. Knowing someone personally like this makes you empathetic and wanting to help, but when the person is really that much of a potential danger to society, what is the right course of action? Potentially a ticking bomb waiting to go off if not properly medicated, and there is no formula for medicating. It is all trial and error. Such an awful condition in every way.

Nikki Angulo
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have a friend who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Not sure if what he did happened before diagnosis or just before he was on the right meds, but he robbed a gas station and left an explosive device behind luckily it was a dud (and surprisingly, as he is highly intelligent but probably more a sign of his meds being off, or he didn’t want it to go off) so no one was injured. He spent time in the psych ward of the local jail and when he got out was on probation. Now he has a family, and is trying to help his new neighbour who seems to be having similar issues. But he didn’t kill anyone either. She needs help, she needs to be on the right meds, and she does need to pay from her crimes, but maybe in a mental institution. It says a lot when stepdad still talked to her after what she did.

Meaghan Stewart
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As someone with Bipolar 2… no tf we do NOT hear voices. That is something entirely different wtf. Yes the mood swings can be and are awful at times, but not even close to Bipolar 1, let alone full-blown psychosis.

tameson
Community Member
2 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Bipolar disorder can definitely include psychotic symptoms. Just look it up.

Load More Replies...
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