Youth Villages workers accused in Alegend Jones death were indicted but never prosecuted
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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The case of Alegend Jones captured the nation’s attention after her family said she died following an encounter with workers inside Youth Villages in 2023.
An exclusive FOX13 investigation discovered that those Youth Villages workers were indicted by a grand jury for her death, but the case was never prosecuted. Instead, the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office dropped the case, days after the grand jury’s indictment.
Only FOX13 obtained a copy of the indictment with the signature of Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy on the last page. It indicted four Youth Villages workers each with aggravated child abuse, aggravated child neglect, reckless homicide, and facilitation of a felony. But all of those charges were dropped.
“You see them taking turns. They got sweat dripping off their shirts like they wrestling with an animal,” said Jones’ mother, Shona Garner White, a month after her daughter’s death.
She’s referring to video of Youth Villages workers in an altercation with Jones on November 17, 2023. Youth Villages is a place that’s supposed to help at-risk children. Garner retained national civil rights attorney Ben Crump to file a lawsuit.
“They all go in on her. They grab her by the neck, and they take her to the corner. And it’s hard to see in the corner because there’s so many bodies around what was actually being done to Alegend,” Crump said after video of the incident was released.
Youth Villages responded by saying staff used a therapeutic hold on Jones. An autopsy later ruled her manner of death undetermined.
Last week, Crump and attorneys from Youth Villages announced an agreement, saying, in part, “All parties agreed that Ms. Jones’s death from a medical emergency was a devastating tragedy. The staff involved followed all necessary therapeutic protocols and procedures.”
After that announcement, FOX13 received information from a source that showed a Shelby County Grand Jury had indicted four Youth Villages staff members in Jones’ death. Their charges include reckless homicide and aggravated child abuse.
Typically, a grand jury’s true bill of indictment will lead a district attorney’s office to prosecute those suspects. But FOX13 Investigates learned, just four days after the grand jury’s decision, the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office dropped the case.
FOX13 asked the district attorney’s office why they chose to drop the case. In a statement, a spokesperson said, “The criminal investigation has concluded, and our office will not pursue prosecution. We have shared this decision with the family, and after careful consideration of the investigation’s findings, they acknowledged and accepted the outcome. Although no charges are being filed, we remain committed to ensuring that proper safeguards and procedures are in place. To that end, Youth Villages has agreed to undergo a comprehensive “sentinel event review” of its practices and policies. As part of this process, they will retain and fund two independent experts chosen by our office to assess current protocols and recommend improvements to help prevent a similar incident in the future.”
Last week, Jones’ mother told FOX13 she could not share details about the settlement because she signed a non-disclosure agreement. But she did tell FOX13 that she was “unhappy” with it.
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