Louis D. Jones pleads to manslaughter in baby's death

Article by: PAT PHEIFER , Star Tribune
Updated: April 23, 2010 - 7:42 PM

A little less than a month after his first trial on charges of second-degree murder ended with a hung jury, Louis D. Jones pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree manslaughter in last year's death of North St. Paul 9-week-old Rhania Jones.

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Jones, 26, entered an Alford plea in Ramsey County District Court. An Alford plea means he does not admit guilty but concedes that if there were a second trial, there is a "substantial likelihood" that he would be convicted of that charge or a more serious one.

Jones began dating Rebecca Shaw, Rhania's mother, while she was pregnant. Rhania wasn't Jones' biological child, but the baby was given his name and he promised to raise her as his own.

According to trial testimony, Jones was the baby's sole caretaker that last week of February 2009, while Shaw worked. The baby was fine when Shaw left their North St. Paul apartment. She called to check on them several times, and Jones told her everything was OK.

But when Shaw returned and sat down to relax, she noticed that Rhania was having trouble breathing and appeared to be in distress. They rushed her to the emergency room at Regions Hospital, and about midnight, she was transferred to St. Paul Children's Hospital.

Prosecutor Jill Gerber reiterated Friday that all the doctors who worked on Rhania agreed that she had "inflicted head injuries." At her autopsy, the county medical examiner's office ruled that she died from inflicted closed-head trauma and that the manner of death was homicide.

During Jones' two-week trial in March, the defense argued that Rhania had suffered a birth injury that didn't surface until she was 2 months old.

Judge M. Michael Monahan will sentence Jones on June 25. He faces between 50 and 81 months in prison.

Of the plea, Rebecca Shaw said, "It's not closure for me. ... Nothing will bring her back."

Pat Pheifer • 612-741-4992