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Alabama mother charged with murder of 13-year-old son; prosecutors say boy may have been sleeping

MOBILE, Ala. — Prosecutors said Thursday that they believe a 13-year-old Mobile, Alabama, boy was asleep in his bed when his mother fatally shot him Monday night.

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Police in the port city initially alleged that Glenda Marie Agee, 53, shot Ja’mil Autry in the back, according to AL.com.

Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Lauren Walsh said during Agee’s Thursday bond hearing, however, that investigators now believe that the gunshot came from the front, striking the boy in the right chest while he slept in the Plateau community, WALA-TV reported.

“We haven’t confirmed that, but the evidence indicates that he would have been sleeping at the time,” Walsh confirmed to the TV station.

According to police, the shooting occurred just before 11 p.m., and the boy died a short while later at an area hospital, AL.com reported.

Agee’s family members, however, characterized the shooting as a tragic accident.

“He loved his mama. She loved him, too. She didn’t play about him,” Gwendolyn Payne, Agee’s sister, told WPMI-TV, adding, “Like I say, this is nothing but a freak accident. She would never hurt him.”

Walsh explained to WALA that the reckless murder charge against Agee means prosecutors are not required to prove that Agee intended to kill Autry.

“So the standard is extreme indifference to human life,” Walsh told the TV station, adding, “But we have uncovered some information about this defendant’s pattern and practice of how she uses firearms, and given that information, we find this to be reckless murder.”

Agee’s criminal history includes assault, domestic violence and driving under the influence charges, as well as a Jan. 2 arrest for second-degree assault of an officer with the Prichard Police Department. She was out on bond on the charge at the time of Monday’s shooting, WPMI reported.

In addition, officials with the Mobile Police Department confirmed to WALA that they responded to Agee’s residence 34 times in the past two years.

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