A pregnant teacher from Laurel, Mississippi, lost her unborn child over the weekend after a hit-and-run with a "serial drunk driver" left her badly injured on the side of the road. Twenty-four-year-old Mashayla Harper, who was 36 weeks pregnant, had just left her Saturday baby shower minutes before when a car driven by 33-year-old James Cory Gilbert allegedly hit her. The mom-to-be was discovered by a hunter, who found her car on the shoulder of the road and called for help.
Harper was pregnant with her first child, whom she planned to name Londyn Alise Jones, before the accident.
Fox News reported that Harper's Honda Accord was allegedly struck head-on by Gilbert's 2005 Nissan Titan on Saturday evening, shortly before 6 p.m. The fourth-grade teacher had been celebrating her pregnancy with friends and family in Soso, Mississippi, that day, looking forward to the impending arrival of her baby girl.
As for Gilbert, he allegedly ran away from the scene.
Gilbert has since been arrested, and he has admitted to police that he was drinking the night of the accident.
A small amount of marijuana was also found inside his vehicle after being searched by police.
“I was scared,” said Gilbert, who is a father of two, according to the Laurel Leader Call. “I’m very sorry. I’m so sorry.”
The dad was arrested by Sheriff Joe Berlin, who reportedly called Gilbert's wife and encouraged her to get him to “do the right thing."
“I’m glad he came clean about it,” said Sgt. J.D. Carter of the Jones County Sheriff’s Department.
Meanwhile, Harper was taken to South Central Regional Medical Center and was later transferred to Forrest General Hospital, where she underwent surgery. Her condition has since gone from critical to stable.
For now, Gilbert is being held on a $100,000 bond. According to reports, this isn't the first time he's been in trouble with the law.
The father of two has had at least three DUI convictions dating back to 2008, and in 2015, he was convicted of felony DUI and possession of methamphetamine.
At Gilbert's initial hearing Monday, District Attorney Tony Buckley condemned the dad for his supreme lack of judgment.
"This one is more egregious because the suspect knew he struck someone and caused life-threatening injuries,” he said. “[Gilbert] truly fled.”
When Jones County Justice Court Judge Billie Graham read the affidavit on the case and noted that Harper “lost her unborn child,” Gilbert and his family members started to cry.
Nothing can rival the pain that Harper's family is feeling right now.
A Facebook post Sunday by Harper's father, Maurice Pruitt Sr., shared some of the heartbreak the family is enduring.
"To see our baby go from this being the happiest day [o]f her life to I.C.U. in a matter of minutes was a complete tragedy," he wrote. "That idiot hit her head-on and left her out there on that road to die. We are grateful for the individual that happened to be in the area hunting to come to her aid, otherwise we may not be sitting in I.C.U. praying as she fight for her life."
A GoFundMe account has been created to help collect funds to help cover Harper's medical bills and has thus far raised more than $6,700. On the donation page, Harper is described as having "one of the biggest hearts a human can have."
For now, her family is hanging on to every hope that she'll pull through. In his Facebook post Sunday, Harper's father was adamant about this fact, sharing, "She's a very strong woman and she continues to fight for her life."
