Prior to Carly Gregg’s conviction for fatally shooting her mother and attempting to kill her stepfather, a child psychiatrist testified during her trial about the then-14-year-old’s state of mind at the time of the killing.
Appearing Tuesday, Sept. 18, as an expert witness on behalf of the defense in the murder trial, Dr. Andrew Clark spoke how now-15-year-old Gregg dealt with symptoms of depression and was previously prescribed medication that made her feel numb, the The Clarion-Ledger reported. Clark also testified that Gregg heard voices, which were “getting worse” prior to the shooting, and that she had a history of self-harm.
Prosecutors said Gregg used her mother’s own gun in March to shoot her dead inside the family’s Brandon, Miss., home before calling her friend to the house, according to The Clarion Ledger, WLBT, and WJTV. Later, the teenager lied in wait in an apparent ambush designed to shoot and kill her stepdad, Heath Smylie, when he arrived home, prosecutors said, per the outlets. Gregg then allegedly fled but was later arrested near the home.
On the day of the shooting, Clark said Gregg was “grumpy and irritable” and couldn’t focus in class at Northwest Rankin High School, where her mother, Ashley Smylie, was a math teacher, according to The Clarion-Ledger. Clark said the teenager claimed her memory “went blank” that day after she let out her dog in the backyard.
After returning home with her mother, prosecutors said Gregg went straight into her parents’ bedroom to retrieve a .357 Magnum pistol from beneath their mattress, according to video from the courtroom shared by Court TV. Hiding the gun behind her back, Gregg then went to her own bedroom and confronted her mother, fatally shooting her three times, Mississippi state prosecutor Kathryn White Newman said, according to The Clarion Ledger, WLBT, and WJTV.
According to Newman, moments later, Gregg invited her friend over. When Gregg answered the door, she asked the friend, “Are you squeamish around dead bodies?” before leading the friend to her bedroom, where Gregg’s mother was dead on the floor from three gunshots, CourtTV and WAPT reported.
Newman told the courtroom that moments before she was killed, Gregg’s mother was searching her daughter’s bedroom for vape pens, WLBT also reported.
“And then, her mother finds out she’s smoking marijuana,” Clark, the psychiatrist, said in court, per WAPT. “For Carly, in particular, she so cared about her mother’s approval, so for her, this was a crisis.”
He added that the teenager had a “close, yet complicated relationship” with her mother, and a close relationship with her stepfather, WAPT reports. Meanwhile, Clark described Gregg’s relationship with her biological father as problematic, adding to the factors that may have contributed to her mental state.
Clark further testified that Gregg was “worried about her mental health,” citing her journal and sketchbook entries, per The Clarion-Ledger.
On Friday, Sept. 20, a Rankin County, Miss., jury found her guilty on all counts including first-degree murder, attempted murder and tampering with evidence, according to The Clarion-Ledger, WAPT, and WLBT. Gregg, who was sentenced to life in prison, was visibly emotional when the verdict was read, WAPT reported.
