On Monday, February 12, 2024, a jury in Newton County, Georgia, rendered a guilty verdict against Dalanna Bailey in a case involving a double shooting while she held her infant. The decision came less than an hour after closing arguments had concluded.
Bailey was accused of fatally shooting La’Peachah Nash, 27, and injuring Deshawn Grayson on May 13, 2020. Authorities arrested Bailey on May 14, 2020, at the Knights Inn motel on Panola Road, DeKalb County, Georgia, alongside her baby, who was found unharmed.
The apprehension occurred about seven hours after a shooting incident at an apartment complex in the 10000 block of Fieldcrest Walk, Covington, Georgia — about 20 miles from the site of her eventual arrest.
The situation materialized when Grayson, the father of Bailey’s child, visited the Fieldcrest Apartment complex, along with his companion Nash, to deliver child support. Upon their arrival, Bailey, who was holding her one-year-old infant, confronted Grayson at her apartment’s doorstep and began screaming at him while she had a firearm concealed in her waistband.
Grayson, fearing for his and his child’s safety, attempted to disarm Bailey. The prosecution stated that Bailey persistently menaced Grayson, warning him that the gun was loaded.
As Grayson dashed for Nash’s car, Bailey pursued him. When Grayson and Nash attempted to flee in the vehicle, Bailey discharged the weapon multiple times while still clutching her child, hitting Nash fatally as she sat behind the wheel and wounding Grayson in his torso.
Nash suffered a critical head injury, was rushed to the Atlanta Medical Center, and succumbed to her wounds the following day, as reported by a local media outlet. Grayson required an emergency medical flight to receive care for an abdominal gunshot wound.
Throughout the trial, the prosecution outlined the volatile relationship between Bailey and Grayson, leading to the shooting. Following closing arguments, the jury found Bailey guilty of two counts of aggravated assault, malice murder, felony murder, criminal attempt to commit murder, two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and cruelty to children in the third degree.
Bailey’s sentencing has been set for March 7, 2024.