Woman indicted in 2001 death of 'Angel Baby Doe,' a newborn who was abandoned in a North Texas cow pasture

Authorities claim Shelby Stotts is the mother of "Angel Baby Doe," a newborn who was found dead in a cow pasture in 2001.

JOHNSON COUNTY, Texas — A decades-old North Texas cold case could be one step closer to being solved.

Monday, the Texas Attorney General's Office Missing Persons and Cold Case Unit announced they secured an indictment in the death of "Angel Baby Doe," a newborn that was found dead in a Johnson County cow pasture in 2001.

According to the indictment, Shelby Stotts is the mother of Baby Doe, and left the newborn to die on the side of the road.

Angel Baby Doe's body was found Nov. 18, 2001, on the side of Briar Oaks Road in Johnson County by a man named Johnny Riddle. Riddle called the police, who collected evidence like a smashed key fob, a spit cup and a coke bottle in hopes of getting DNA evidence.

Until now, that evidence has turned up nothing but dead ends. According to the Office of the Attorney General, the Johnson County Sheriff's Office requested help in June 2022 to investigate new leads in the case. In a statement, the AG's office says Stott's DNA was linked to the crime in Sept. 2023.

Additional evidence suggests the child was alive and breathing at the time of birth, making Stotts liable for the child's death, according to the Office of the Attorney General.

Stotts is facing one charge of manslaughter. She was booked into a Johnson County jail Monday. In court, Stotts will be prosecuted under the laws that were in effect in 2001 at the time of the crime.

Baby Doe would have been 22 years old today. She is buried in Rose Hill Cemetery.

Texas' Safe Haven Law, which was enacted in 1999, allows parents to drop off an infant 60 days old or younger at a safe place -- a hospital, fire station, EMS station, or freestanding ER -- if they feel they cannot take care of their child.

Go here for more information about Texas' Safe Haven Law.

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