photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

The Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center is pictured in March of 2022. The center houses the Douglas County District Court and other county services.

A young woman has been charged with arson in connection with an incident that allegedly led to a shooting at a Lawrence residence by the woman’s mother.

The woman charged with felony arson, Jayda Renae Kelly Neal, 20 of Lee’s Summit, Missouri, is the daughter of Natasha Renae Neal, 45, who faces charges in the alleged gun crime. The arson charge against Jayda is in connection with an incident on March 19 in the 1600 block of Haskell Avenue.

Natasha is also the mother of Isaiah Neal, 17, who was fatally on June 13, 2024, near his Lawrence home at 2406 Alabama St. Another teen, Cir Allen Glover, 19, of Lawrence, has been charged with first-degree murder in Isaiah’s death, and is scheduled to go to trial next week.

photo by: Contributed

Natasha Neal and Isaiah Neal

photo by: Chris Conde/Journal-World

Cir Allen Glover at a hearing on June 18, 2025.

Natasha is charged with firing a gun at the Haskell Avenue residence that had multiple people, including children, inside, as the Journal-World reported. According to an affidavit in support of Natasha’s arrest, police believe Natasha herself, or someone on Natasha’s orders, fired multiple rounds in retaliation at the residence, where Jayda was involved in a dispute. The affidavit contains numerous redactions.

Natasha denied the allegations against both Jayda and herself in a conversation with the Journal-World shortly after Natasha was charged in April.

Natasha told the Journal-World that Jayda was attacked at the residence and that while she tried to escape she knocked over a charcoal grill inside the house. No explanation was given for there being a charcoal grill indoors.

Natasha said that Jayda was able to escape and that she, Natasha, went to the residence twice to talk to the people who had attacked her daughter. She said she never had a gun.

According to the police affidavit, a witness told police that around 6:30 p.m. Jayda and her boyfriend, whose name is redacted in the document, were in a fight where the boyfriend choked and restrained Jayda before the main resident of the apartment intervened. In response, Jayda threatened to burn the house down, the witness said.

Jayda then went into the dining area of the residence, turned on two stove-top burners and sprayed cooking oil all over the stove and floor, the witness said; Jayda then kicked over a charcoal grill that was being used to cook food, according to the affidavit.

The woman whose apartment it was said she saw that charcoal had been placed on the window sills of the kitchen and dining room. She told police that she first tried to extinguish the coals with milk and water before getting a fire extinguisher, which turned out to inoperable. The woman eventually was able to put the fire out with water, according to the affidavit.

The woman began gathering her children and their belongings to leave the house and saw Jayda leave the residence carrying a firearm, she told police.

Not long after Jayda left, Natasha arrived and was upset that Jayda had been involved in a domestic dispute, according to the affidavit.

Natasha allegedly told the woman to get the children out of the apartment and to inform her when the kids were gone. The woman replied that she could not leave because she did not have transportation. Natasha then left, but returned about an hour later.

The woman said that Natasha was looking for the man who had allegedly choked Jayda, who was not at the residence. Natasha then pulled out a black Nike batter’s glove, put it on her hand and made a fist, according to the affidavit.

Natasha then allegedly pulled out a Glock pistol out of her back pocket. The woman said Natasha did not point the gun at anyone but displayed it, which the woman took to be a threat to a person whose name is redacted in the affidavit.

The woman then told Natasha to calm down and to leave, which she said she did.

Another hour passed before the woman heard gunfire and saw bullets entering the residence near the front door, close to where her child’s mattress was, according to the affidavit.

The woman texted Natasha, accusing her of the shooting, which Natasha denied, claiming she had been at home. The woman told police that she believed Natasha fired the shots herself or hired someone to do so.

During the subsequent investigation, police said they located surveillance video that showed Natasha arriving at the residence that night around the time the woman described. They said the video showed Natasha returning to her vehicle less than two minutes later and again 36 minutes later in the same manner.

One hour after Natasha was last seen in the area, video showed the car that police believe she was driving earlier that night arriving at the residence; two people not identified in the affidavit exit the vehicle, one from the rear driver’s door and one from the front passenger door. The two individuals approach the house as the car follows behind them, according to the affidavit.

One of them, identified as a male in the affidavit, then extends his arm and two muzzle flashes can be seen on the video as he fires a gun toward the residence.

Investigators seized Natasha’s cellphone about a week later and downloaded her location data, which they said showed that her phone was in the area of the shooting when it occurred. The cellphone data also showed that Natasha called the woman at the apartment just minutes before the shooting and the text exchange between the two women afterward, according to the affidavit.

Jayda was arrested on the arson charge on Sunday and was released on a $10,000 surety bond. Natasha has been free since her arrest in April on a $100,000 surety bond. The trial of the man accused of fatally shooting her son is set to start on Monday.