Suspect in infant’s death gets new court date

Published 9:41 am Tuesday, September 8, 2015

By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

COLUMBIANA – A 23-year-old Maylene woman who is facing a reckless murder charge tied to the death of her infant son is now set to appear in Shelby County Circuit Court on Oct. 6 after her late August date was reset.

Wilford

Wilford

Sommer Nicole Wilford, who lists an address in Carriage Circle in Maylene, was set to appear in court on Aug. 31 for a preliminary hearing, but her hearing is now set for 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 31, according to court documents filed on Sept. 3.

The hearing is set to take place before Circuit Court Judge Dan Reeves at the Shelby County Courthouse in Columbiana.

The Alabaster Police Department arrested Wilford and charged her with one count of reckless murder on Feb. 28, 2014, after responding to a report of a one-vehicle accident near the intersection of Alabama 119 and Kent Dairy Road.

According to Alabaster Police, when officers arrived on the scene of the Feb. 28, 2014, crash, they found Wilford “standing outside the vehicle that was engulfed in flames.” After Alabaster firefighters extinguished the fire, they discovered the body of 19-month-old Jayden Allen inside the vehicle.

Wilford was released from the Shelby County Jail on March 20, 2014, after multiple individuals put their properties up as collateral on her $300,000 bond.

In September 2014, a court-ordered drug test revealed Wilford was pregnant. Following his standard procedure for those who arrive late to their court hearings, Reeves ordered Wilford to be transported to the Shelby County Jail to take a drug test. The test results were negative for drugs, but revealed Wilford was pregnant.

Reckless murder is a Class A felony. If convicted, Wilford could face between 10 years and life in prison.