‘Baby Jessica’ arrested in Texas following alleged domestic disturbance

Jessica McClure Morales, the woman who rose to global prominence as “Baby Jessica” in 1987 when she was rescued after falling into a well as an 18-month-old, was arrested in Midland County, Texas following an alleged domestic disturbance.

Morales, who is now 40, was taken into custody Saturday night by the Midland County Sheriff’s Office at her home in Midland County, according to KMID/KPEJ, citing arrest records. 

The station says Morales was charged with assault causing bodily injury involving family violence and later was released from the Midland County Detention Center after posting bond.

The sheriff’s office confirmed the arrest to FOX 4 in Dallas-Fort Worth.

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Further details about the alleged incident were not immediately available and the Midland County Sheriff’s Office did not respond to multiple requests for comment from Fox News Digital.

Morales drew international media coverage as an infant when she fell down an 8-inch wide well at her aunt’s home in the area.

She remained stuck in the well for around 58 hours before being pulled to the surface on the evening of Oct. 16, 1987. 

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Morales was trapped about 22 feet underground during the ordeal and was saved after first responders drilled a parallel shaft and horizonal tunnel through rock to access her location, KMID/KPEJ reported. 

When rescuers brought Morales to the surface days later, her head was bandaged, and she was covered with dirt and bruises. 

A poll taken by The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press in 1997 that measured coverage of Princess Diana’s death earlier that year found that in the previous decade, only Jessica’s rescue rivaled the Paris car accident in worldwide attention.

Chip McClure, the father of Morales, remembered being “absolutely floored” by the media coverage once the family got to the hospital with Jessica.

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Then-Vice President George Bush and his wife, Barbara, former Midland residents, visited. President Ronald Reagan called. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.