Naman Shrestha
When Harold “Peanut” Allen passed away suddenly in his Freetown, Indiana, home in December 2022, the police found no signs of foul play. However, the investigation into his demise was reopened when his stepdaughter, Ashley Nicole Jones, and wife, Marsha Allen, were linked to the murder. It turned out that Ashley bought many poisonous items off the internet in the months leading up to Harold’s death, while Marsha was allegedly responsible for adding the poison to his drink. All the intricate details of the crime and the investigation that ensued are explored in CBS’ ’48 Hours: The Root Beer Float Murder.’
Ashley Nicole Jones Orchestrated a Deadly Plot With Her Mother Marsha Allen
Born on November 22, 1993, Ashley Nicole Jones collaborated with her mother, Marsha Allen, to kill her stepfather, Harold “Peanut” Allen. According to investigative reports, the mother-daughter duo began plotting Harold’s death around September 2022. On September 14, Ashley reportedly ordered pong pong seeds from eBay. Used for suicidal ingestion, the seeds work by disrupting cardiac electrical activity. About a month later, they arrived at Marsha’s house in Freetown, Indiana, where she lived with Harold. As per reports, Ashley and Marsha put the ground-up seeds into a batch of brownies on November 26.
After consuming the brownies, Harold got so sick that he was admitted to the hospital the following day. However, when he showed signs of improvement, Ashley received a string of texts from Marsha, who seemed frustrated. “I am irritated and can’t sleep peacefully,” she wrote. “I need this to be over… I wish it would reach its climax and be done lol.” To this, Ashley replied, “Agreed.” On December 1, 2022, Ashley then purchased water hemlock, which is a toxic plant associated with causing abdominal pain, flushing, nausea, and even death. It was reportedly delivered on December 8 to the Freetown home where Marsha and Harold lived.
Ashley Nicole Jones Ultimately Confessed to Her Involvement in the Crime
According to text messages recovered by police, Marsha tried to poison her husband over the following days by placing the hemlock poison into a bowl of chili, a glass of soda, and a margarita. However, the attempts were unsuccessful. Then, on December 13, Ashley ordered the ethylene glycol, which ultimately led to Harold’s demise on December 20, 2022. Initially, the police found no sign of foul play. Nearly a year later, in September 2023, Ashley allegedly hired two men, Steven White and Nathaniel Napier, to commit a burglary in her mother’s Freetown home. After the police took the men into custody, one of them told the detectives that Ashley had told them how Marsha was responsible for poisoning Harold.
As the investigators dug deeper into the allegations, they found text messages between Marsha and Ashley where they talked about killing Harold with poison. On October 3, Ashley was arrested at her Missouri residence in connection with the burglary at her mother’s home. As soon as the authorities obtained a search warrant for Marsha’s home, they found her dead by apparent suicide on October 16, 2023. The following day, Ashley Jones admitted she had purchased ethylene glycol online but claimed Marsha had mixed it into Harold’s drink. On October 18, Ashley was arrested at the Jackson County Jail for her involvement in Harold’s death.
Ashley Nicole Jones is Currently Incarcerated at an Indiana Prison Facility
Less than a week after her arrest for Harold’s demise, on October 26, 2023, Ashley Nicole Jones was officially charged with one count of murder, one count of felony murder, one count of conspiracy to commit murder, one count of consumer product tampering, and attempted murder. On August 7, 2025, she pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit murder and one count of attempted murder. More than a month later, on September 23, 2025, her sentencing hearing took place.
Harold’s sister-in-law, Hannah Allen, addressed Ashley, stating, “A person is so evil and selfish she took a life.” Ashley’s defense attorney spoke on her behalf, saying she accepted responsibility for the crime and that 45 years was enough, as a shorter sentence wouldn’t diminish the seriousness of the crime. In the end, Ashley Jones was sentenced to 50 years in prison for her involvement in the death of her stepfather. As of today, the 33-year-old woman is serving her sentence at Indiana Women’s Prison in Indianapolis, Indiana, with the expected release date scheduled for March 2061.
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