Hiccups, which Jennifer Mee suffered constantly, are due to a contraction of the diaphragm. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
Jennifer Mee, the “Hiccup Girl” who was featured on national news shows, has been arrested for murder. Mee, 19, was charged along with two other people of robbing a man at gunpoint and murdering him. Jennifer Mee came to national prominence several years ago as a result of weeks of continuous hiccups. She was on the “Today Show,” among others.
Jennifer Mee charged with murder
Jennifer Mee was arrested in Florida on suspicion of first degree murder along with two others charged with the crime, according to MSNBC. It is alleged that Mee, 19, along with Laron Raiford, 20, and Lamont Newton, 22, lured Shannon Griffin to a undisclosed location. He was robbed at gunpoint by Raiford and Newton. After taking things from the man, a scuffle ensued and Griffin was shot numerous times, mostly in the upper torso. All three have admitted to being involved with the crime. Jennifer Mee and her accomplices are being charged under the felony murder statute, in which an accomplice to a crime which ends in murder is held accountable for the murder as well. If convicted, all three may face the death penalty.
‘Hiccup Girl’
Jennifer Mee came to national prominence as “The Hiccup Girl.” For Jennifer Mee, hiccups went on for more than five weeks constantly. She would hiccup up to 50 times a minute every day, which eventually attracted media attention. She was featured on the “Today Show” among others in 2007, coming to national prominence. She saw numerous specialists to cure the affliction, and she eventually was diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome, according to WTSP News in Tampa. Tourette’s medication cured her hiccups.
Trial awaits
All three defendants have admitted to being involved in the crime, and are being held without bail. If all three are convicted, they can be sentenced to death under the felony murder statute. Felony murder mandates at least a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
