North Texas woman sentenced to 20 years in "Angel Baby Doe" cold case, 24 years later

The woman charged in connection with the death of a newborn baby whose body was found 24 years ago in a ditch in Johnson County has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, officials announced Thursday.

Shelby Ann Stotts, of Covington, pled guilty on Monday to manslaughter. On Thursday, a jury sentenced her to the maximum allowable sentence of 20 years in prison.

"After 24 years, 2 months, 18 days, 4 hours, and 10 minutes, justice was finally done on behalf of the infant girl whom this community named 'Angel Baby Doe,'" Johnson County District Attorney Timothy Good said in a statement.

"Angel Baby Doe"

In 2001, a newborn baby was dumped in a ditch between Burleson and Alvarado. The baby, who still had its umbilical cord, bled out because it did not receive medical care, investigators said. 

Investigators have since referred to the newborn as "Angel Baby Doe."

In 2024, Stotts was taken into custody after investigators in Johnson County received help from the Texas Attorney General's Missing Persons and Cold Case unit. DNA technology revealed Stotts was the baby's biological mother. 

Good said the baby's biological father was not aware that Stotts was even pregnant with the baby and only learned about the child 2 years ago. He gave an impact statement in which he named the child "Taryn Angel Moreno." 

The Safe Haven Law was in place when Angel Baby Doe was abandoned. It allows any parent to drop off an infant younger than 60 days old at a "safe place."

That would include places like fire stations, hospitals, or EMS stations. No questions are asked and there is no threat of getting in legal trouble.