Jury convicts mother in death of child by former Clay man

By Timothy Wyatt-Corbin News Journal
Alexandra Ward, the mother of three-year-old Amoura Smallwood who died in February 2023 after being brutally beaten by Ward’s then-boyfriend, has been found guilty in connection to her daughter’s death following a weeklong jury trial.

Ward, 22, faced charges of complicity to commit murder and complicity to commit first-degree strangulation in connection to Smallwood’s death. She was convicted on both counts just before noon Tuesday. 

The jury—consisting of seven women and five men—handed down the decision after deliberating for approximately 50 minutes.

The jury’s list of possible convictions in regard to Smallwood’s death included: complicity to commit murder, complicity to commit second-degree manslaughter, and complicity to commit reckless homicide.

A complicity to commit murder conviction carries a possible maximum sentence of life in prison. A complicity to commit second-degree manslaughter conviction carries a possible sentence of five to 10 years in prison. A complicity to commit reckless homicide conviction carries a possible sentence of one to five years in prison. 

For the count of complicity to commit first-degree strangulation, the jury was just asked to find Ward guilty or not guilty. 

That count carries a possible sentence of five to 10 years in prison.

This story will be updated once a decision has been made regarding Ward’s sentencing.

Smallwood died on Feb. 19, 2023, from blunt force injuries to the head and body due to non-accidental injuries. Those injuries were inflicted upon Smallwood by Jordan Taylor, 24, of Corbin, originally from Manchester, who Ward left in care of Smallwood and another infant child despite only knowing him for just a few weeks.

On the day she died, Smallwood had been in the sole care of Taylor since approximately 8:30 a.m.

Taylor entered a guilty plea to charges of murder, first-degree sodomy and first-degree strangulation in October 2024. He has since been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

For more information regarding the trial, including coverage on Ward’s testimony as she took the stand in her own defense, see the April 2 edition of the News Journal.