‘Mommy, you fell on me.’ Biloxi mother admits killing child in domestic violence fight
“Mommy, you fell on me,’ the little girl said
Those were the last words 4-year-old Skylar “Sky Sky” May said to her mother, Jahcoriya Annette-Yashon May, before the little girl lost consciousness and died after her heart exploded, Assistant District Attorney George Huffman said.
The child had suffered fatal injuries after her mother fell on top of her during a violent fight with the father of some of May’s other children, identified in court records as McNeal Albert Pearson, 22, of Biloxi.
A Harrison County grand jury indicted May and Pearson on charges of manslaughter in the child’s Nov. 9, 2021, death in Biloxi. Pearson has pleaded not guilty and is tentatively set for trial in May.
On Thursday, May admitted causing her little girl’s death when she pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of aggravated assault domestic violence and an additional charge of aggravated assault for shooting and injuring a woman May said was harassing her at her job in an unrelated incident.
“I just want to apologize to the court for having to be here today because of my actions,” May said.
Her attorney, Jim Davis, told the judge before sentencing that May has already suffered greatly because she lost her little girl as a result of her actions.
Judge Christopher Schmidt sentenced May on Thursday to 20 years on each count, suspending 10 years each and leaving 10 years for May to serve in prison for the crime. The judge fined her $2,000.
“It was a tragic event that was brought about by the defendant’s reckless actions,” Huffman said.
According to prosecutors, May and Pearson had a history of domestic violence. Biloxi police knew them well, having responded to other fights between the two, including one violent attack in which Pearson was stabbed.
However, the pair would never follow through with charges against one another in the domestic violence attacks.
The fight that killed Skylar occurred after Pearson went to May’s home at Elmwood Apartment to visit his children with May. He also visited Skylar because he had developed a relationship with her.
At some point during the visit, the former couple got into an argument, and May told Pearson to leave. That’s when the violence that would end Skylar’s life began, the prosecutor said.
Pearson punched May, and she grabbed a broom and started hitting him, the prosecutor said, and “a violent” fight between the two continued.
“The fight goes into the kitchen and the living room,” Huffman said. “They continue to hit one another. They are wrestling and fighting” when May falls on the child.
The two kept fighting after Skylar told her mom she had fallen on her.
The attacks ended only after the pair called for help when they realized Skylar had lost consciousness, but the prosecutor said it was too late.
As a bailiff started escorting May out of the courtroom, family members shouted out that they loved her and would be there for her once she was released.
Pearson has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in the killing. He is set to go to trial in May.
