Federal trial delayed again for Missouri couple
SPRINGFIELD — The federal jury trial for a McDonald County couple in connection with the death of a pregnant Arkansas woman and her unborn child has been reset to October, according to court documents.
Amber Waterman, 44, of Pineville, is charged federally with kidnapping resulting in death and causing the death of the child in utero.
Jamie Waterman, her husband, is charged with one count of being an accessory after the fact to kidnapping resulting in death.
The couple’s federal jury trial was previously set for June 3. It is now slated to begin at 9 a.m. on Oct. 21 in Springfield before District Judge Stephen R. Bough.
The Pineville couple is being held without bond in a Missouri jail. The Watermans were arrested in connection with the deaths of Ashley Bush and her unborn child.
Bush, who was 31 weeks pregnant, was last seen in the passenger seat of an older, tan pickup truck in Maysville, Ark., on Oct. 31, 2022, according to a Nov. 1, 2022, post on the Benton County (Ark.) Sheriff’s Office Facebook page. According to court documents, a person who called herself “Lucy” picked Bush up in Maysville on Oct. 31, 2022. Authorities said they suspect Amber Waterman was “Lucy.”
Bush’s body was found three days later in Missouri. The body of her baby — Valkyrie Grace — was found elsewhere in Missouri, according to court documents.
The original indictment states between Oct. 31 and Nov. 2, 2022, Waterman kidnapped Bush to claim Bush’s unborn child as her own.
Jamie Waterman, 43, told authorities his wife showed him Bush’s body, which was near their home, according to court documents. He said they burned the body and took the charred remains to another location, the documents state.
Amber Waterman is charged in Benton County, Ark., with two counts of capital murder and kidnapping in connection with the deaths of Bush and her baby.
Jamie Waterman was not charged with any offense by Benton County prosecutors.