Mother and Daughter Accused of Plotting Husband’s Murder Using Poisoned Root Beer Float
Photo: Jackson County Sheriff’s office
An Indiana mother and daughter are facing serious charges after allegedly making four attempts to poison and ultimately kill the mother’s husband, Harold Allen, in December 2022, according to recently filed court documents, acquired by People.
Prosecutors have added two attempted murder charges against 30-year-old Ashley Jones after uncovering emails that revealed she and her mother, Marsha Allen, had made multiple attempts to poison 52-year-old Harold Allen. These new charges are in addition to the initial charges of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and consumer product tampering.
The case began to unfold when Harold Allen was reported unconscious at his home in Freetown on December 20, 2022. Despite initial suspicions of no foul play, further investigation revealed that Marsha Allen and Ashley Jones had ordered ethylene glycol—a toxic substance—online and used it to poison Harold by placing it in his root beer float.
On October 16, 2023, Marsha Allen was found dead in her home in what is suspected to be a suicide. The next day, Jones, who was already in custody for an unrelated burglary, confessed to the poisoning, stating that her mother had administered the fatal dose of ethylene glycol.
The investigation also uncovered emails showing that the mother-daughter duo had attempted to kill Harold Allen multiple times before his death. In July 2024, detectives found that Jones had ordered pong seeds, which contain the deadly toxin Cerberin, and attempted to use them in brownies that made Harold severely ill but did not kill him.
After this failed attempt, Jones allegedly ordered water hemlock—a highly toxic plant—on December 1, 2022. The pair made three unsuccessful attempts to poison Harold with water hemlock, adding it to his chili, soda, and margarita in the days leading up to his death. When these attempts failed, Jones ordered ethylene glycol on December 13, 2022, which was finally used to kill Harold Allen a week later.
Jackson County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey Chalfant has requested a life sentence without parole for Jones, citing the aggravating circumstances of Harold Allen’s murder and the torture he endured before his death. Jones’ jury trial is scheduled to begin on January 7, 2025.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
