Nalah Jackson's court appearance rescheduled for Friday
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — The Columbus woman facing federal kidnapping charges for the abduction of twin babies in a stolen car has her next court hearing this Friday.
Nalah Jackson, 24, has been in the Franklin County Jail for the last five months, and a decision could be made affecting whether she will remain in custody ahead of a federal trial.
Initially, Jackson was due in court Thursday afternoon, but due to issues with transport, the court date was changed to Friday morning.
Previously, a Franklin County Municipal Court judge gave Jackson a $1.5 million bond on local felony kidnapping charges.
MORE | Columbus woman accused of kidnapping young twins faces new felony charges for car theft
According to online records, the local case and bond have been dismissed, noting the pending federal prosecution of Jackson.
Jackson is accused of driving away in a stolen car containing five-month-old twins Ky’air and Kason Thomas in December 2022.
The boys’ mother had left them alone in the running car while working on a DoorDash order at a Donato’s on North High Street in the Short North, Columbus Police said.
Ky’air was found the following morning abandoned in his car seat at the Dayton International Airport, and Kason was found a couple of days later abandoned in the stolen car in Indianapolis, where police also later arrested Jackson.
The boys were unharmed.
Two weeks before the abductions, Dublin police said Jackson crashed two stolen cars within minutes of each other near Bridge Park. She pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property in Franklin County Common Pleas Court in April, according to court records.
Video from the aftermath of crashes recorded on the cameras worn by Dublin police officers showed several witnesses telling officers Jackson had claimed she was pregnant.
According to court records, Jackson gave birth last May to a baby who had tested positive for cocaine and Franklin County Children Services had taken custody of the infant.
Jackson’s defense attorney in the kidnapping case has asked that she receive mental health evaluation to determine if she had post-partum depression or post-partum psychosis at the time of the abduction, records obtained by ABC 6/FOX 28 showed.
"A complete mental health evaluation is essential to develop mitigation and any mental health defense in the case," Jackson's federal public defender wrote in a request for a postponement of the federal trial. "Defense has been working at identifying an expert with specialization in post-partum depression and post-partum psychosis, which counsel believes may be part of Ms. Jackson's mental health diagnosis."
Jackson's attorney is looking to push back the kidnapping until as late as October.
Weeks after the Thomas twins were reunited with their family, Ky’air passed away as a result of Sudden Unexplained Infant Death when he was left face down on an adult bed with excess bedding and pillows, according to an autopsy report from Franklin County Coroner’s Office.
