Asheville woman arrested, charged with 1st-degree murder in weekend double shooting

Sarah Honosky, Asheville Citizen Times
·2 min read
An Asheville woman was charged with first-degree murder after a double shooting Jan. 30 that left one man dead and another man in critical condition. She was taken into custody by APD on Jan. 30.
An Asheville woman was charged with first-degree murder after a double shooting Jan. 30 that left one man dead and another man in critical condition. She was taken into custody by APD on Jan. 30.

An Asheville woman was charged with first-degree murder after a double shooting Jan. 30 that left one man dead and another man in critical condition.

Jalia Love Jones, 19, was charged with murder, attempted murder and second-degree trespassing after a weekend shooting at the Spruce Hill Apartments in East Asheville, according to her arrest warrant.

Carl Lee Ellington Jr., 24, died at Mission Hospital Jan. 30 after being shot multiple times, according to a news release from the Asheville Police Department.

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Staekwon Tyjai Taylor, 23, also had multiple gunshot wounds, police said Jan. 30, and was in critical condition at Mission Hospital.

Taylor was in "very serious condition" by late morning Jan. 31, according to Asheville Police Capt. Joe Silberman.

Silberman said the case is still under investigation and he could not comment on motive.

"We are navigating the idea that there are other people still involved in this," Silberman said. “Just because there’s an arrest, there’s a lot of case left to be worked."

Currently, the department does not have any other suspects, but he said they are "investigating the possibility."

The arrest warrant was issued Jan. 30. Jones was taken into custody by Asheville police at around 7:05 p.m., and is being held at the Buncombe County Detention Center under a bond of $400,000.

Buncombe County District Attorney Todd Williams said records indicate Jones has been appointed a public defender.

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Police responded to a report of gunshot wounds at 3:38 a.m. Jan. 30 at the 100 block of Spruce Hill Lane in East Asheville, where they found Ellington and Taylor, who were transported to Mission Hospital, according to the release.

Silberman said officers arrived to find both with serious wounds, and an officer was able to render some trauma care to Taylor before Emergency Services arrived.

He believed the shooting occurred in the breezeway of the apartment complex.

Ellington's death is the first homicide for Asheville in 2022. There were 10 homicides in 2021.

Police continue to investigate the incident. Anyone with information about the shooting can provide it anonymously by texting TIP2APD to 847411 or via the TIP2APD smartphone app. People also can call APD at 828-252-1110.

This story will be updated.

Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville woman charged with murder, detained in Buncombe County jail