US3 min(s) read
Published 10:09 15 Apr 2026 GMT
Authorities have shared an update following the arrest of "Baby Jessica" 39 years after her rescue.
Jessica McClure Morales became a household name at just 18 months old when she became the focus of a 60-hour rescue effort on October 14, 1987.
The little girl had been playing with four other toddlers in her aunt’s backyard in Midland, Texas, when she fell into a narrow well and was trapped approximately 22 feet underground.
Emergency crews worked around the clock to reach her. They were able to drill a hole and carefully lower a ladder into the shaft to reach the baby. They then inserted a microphone, where they heard Jessica singing 'Winnie the Pooh', confirming she was still alive.
"I didn’t know what to do. I just ran in and called the police. They were there within three minutes, but it felt like a lifetime," Jessica’s mother, Cissy, told PEOPLE in November 1987.
Eventually, a paramedic bravely climbed down the drilled shaft and successfully saved the baby girl.
Despite suffering a cut to her head and requiring the amputation of a toe due to infection, Jessica made a remarkable recovery.
The incredible story received so much media coverage that it was adapted into a 1989 film titled Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure.
Over 37 years after the traumatic accident, Jessica - who is now a mom - revealed that she doesn't remember being rescued.
“I learned about it when I was four and watched it on Rescue 911 at my then stepmother’s house. It was overwhelming. I remember crying. She said, 'You do realize that is about you?' My dad said, 'We were waiting until she was a little bit older to tell her,'" she said.
She hopes that her story teaches her children to always "be humble," and "remember that if you look hard enough, there are so many good people in this world," per the outlet.
Since her rescue, Jessica lived a quiet life in the town she grew up in with her husband, Danny, and their two children, Simon and Sheyenne.
Last Saturday (April 11), the now-40-year-old was arrested and taken into custody from the scene after a reported domestic disturbance at her Midland County home.
According to Your Basin, she was charged with assault causing bodily injury involving family violence, but was later released from the Midland County Detention Center after posting bail.
Officials have released limited information about the incident, and Midland County said it may take up to 10 days for her arrest affidavit to become public.
.webp_ke6C2y?tr=cr-169.8.1505.1344,f-webp,q-75)