19-Year-Old Hillsborough Woman Charged for Killing Her Mother, Kidnapping Her Sibling

Hillsborough, NC – The Hillsborough Police Department arrested and charged a young woman on Monday (Aug. 14) in connection with the death of her mother and the kidnapping of a sibling from their Bellevue Mill apartment on South Nash Street.

Jaydah Westmoreland, 19, of Hillsborough has been charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping. She is being held without bond in the Orange County Jail following a brief court hearing in Orange County District Court on Tuesday (Aug. 15) afternoon.

Hillsborough police reported finding Delila Nicole Westmoreland, 41, dead from multiple gunshot wounds around 7:45 p.m. Monday in the apartment building. They learned while investigating the killing that Delila Westmoreland’s 2-year-old child was missing, the report said.

The child was found safe and returned to family members, police said. Bullets entered a neighboring apartment in Hillsborough, police said, but no one else was injured.

Jaydah Westmoreland stood beside Orange County Public Defender Woodrena Baker-Harrell on Tuesday while her charges were read in court.

District Court Judge Joal Broun advised Westmoreland that she could face the death penalty or life in prison if convicted on the murder charge. The kidnapping charge could bring up to 23 years and 3 months in prison, Broun said.

A capital defender will be appointed to represent Westmoreland in future court hearings. Baker-Harrell indicated a motion could be filed in the future seeking a bail bond reduction.

The hearing was continued to Aug. 28.

The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation and the Durham County Sheriff’s Office helped Hillsborough police arrest Jaydah Westmoreland, who was found at a house in Durham.

A male caller identifying himself as Delila Westmoreland’s child called 911 shortly before police arrived Monday and said she was inside the apartment, lying on the floor in her room, according to 911 reports. 

The caller and at least one other person were outside, he said in the three-minute call, but he did not mention that his mother had been shot. There was no one there who could perform CPR, he told the operator when asked.

The operator then asked if he knew what happened. The male caller responded, “No, we just got here.”

The call was dispatched to police and EMS personnel as a “cardiac arrest,” but Westmoreland was dead when they arrived, according to 911 calls.

An officer who initially investigated the scene reported, “There’s a pack of 22 rounds in a pocketbook here, and it’s missing quite a few (rounds),” according to Hillsborough police radio communications.

Police have not said what weapon was used to kill Westmoreland or if it has been recovered. Officers impounded a 2016 Buick Verano registered to Delila Westmoreland, 911 reports showed. The car’s license plate was expired, it said.