A pregnant convicted felon was arrested today in the 2007 killing of a Vicksburg cab-company owner who was shot as he cleaned his car, Deputy Chief Jeffery Scott said.

Valerie Shepard, 38, who had been convicted of manslaughter in the shooting of her husband in 1993, was taken to the Vicksburg Police Department headquarters just after noon today and charged in the shooting on June 27, 2007, of James Buie, who was the owner of a taxi company and towing service.  Buie died July 14 at University Medical Center in Jackson.

Vicksburg police declined to say where Shepard was arrested today.

Mrs. Shepard’s son, Robert Shepard, who was at the police department shortly after the arrest, said his mother is four months pregnant. He said his mother’s address is 3601 Security St., but that she stays at 810 Patton St. Shepard was being held in the Warren County Jail without bail until her initial court hearing on Monday.

In addition, Timothy Clark, 23, an inmate at East Mississippi Correctional Facility in Lauderdale County, will be charged as an accessory in the killing.

Buie, who was 52, was shot in the abdomen as he worked on his car at Kar-Kleen Machine Shop & Car Wash near Clay and Hope streets. He operated a cab company and a wrecker service under the business name J&B for about 15 years until his death.

The arrest is the third “cold case” bust made by Vicksburg police in the past three months.

Read more in Saturday’s Vicksburg Post