ROBERTSDALE, Alabama — A Robertsdale woman pleaded not guilty in a Baldwin County court Wednesday, May 29 after being indicted on capital murder charges Tuesday, May 28 in the death last year of her 1-year-old daughter.
According to jail records, Jordan Nicole Rice, 28, of Patterson Road in Robertsdale, was booked into the Baldwin County Corrections Facility on May 25, 2018, charged with aggravated child abuse. She was released Jan. 9 on a $100,000 bond.
Records also show that she was booked on charges of assault-aggravated child abuse on Jan. 21 and is in jail without bond. According to reports, she was indicted on Tuesday, May 28 on capital murder charges.
She pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday, May 29, saying she suffered from “mental disease and defect,” according to reports.
Reports also state that Rice has undergone surgery for a tumor in her head and that the tumor has caused near blindness.
According to jail records, 30-year-old Robert Rice of Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, reportedly the child’s father, was booked into the Baldwin County Corrections Facility on May 24, charged with manslaughter/reckless and aggravated child abuse. He is in jail on a $200,000 bond.
According to reports, the Air Force veteran wasn’t there when Violet died, but authorities say he knew about her condition.
The indictments are the culmination of a yearlong investigation involving the Baldwin County Sheriff’s office, the U.S. Air Force and the Baldwin County District Attorney’s office, according to reports.
Officers responded to a call May 24, 2018 on Patterson Road near the Styx River community of a “1-year-old child found deceased in a recreation vehicle-type trailer.”
Deputies found 13-month-old Violet Rice in a small chair on the floor of the RV. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Two other children were also in the vehicle with the deceased child. They were identified as siblings ages 3 and 6.
The two other children on the scene were taken into custody by the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office and turned over to the Alabama Department of Human Resources.
