Jalesia F. McQueen Bio
Jalesia “Jasha” F. McQ
ueen, is Co-Owner and Director of Embryo Defense. She also is an attorney and owns McQueen Law LLC. Jasha’s fight for her frozen embryos (Noah and Genesis) began in late 2010 when her divorce was filed in St. Louis County, Missouri. After many delays, the trial was held in September of 2014. In April of 2015, the trial court stated that Noah and Genesis were property and denied giving Jasha custody of them. Instead, the trial court erroneously invalidated an agreement where she and her ex-husband had agreed to give the unborn children to her upon divorce or separation. The trial court further decided to maintain joint ownership where neither party could implant or dispose of the embryos without the other’s mutual consent. Jasha is appealing the decision. Her case will be the first case to reach a higher court in Missouri.
A second generation immigrant fluent in Spanish, Jasha graduated cum laude with a law degree from Southern Illinois University School of Law. She also served on active duty in the U.S. Army for 5 years, leaving at the rank of Captain. Jasha earned a master’s degree in human resource management from Troy State University and an undergraduate degree in Communications, magna cum laude, from the University of Tampa. She is the Chairman for the Hispanic Republicans of Missouri and was the St. Louis County Republican Party endorsed candidate for her 2014 run for St. Louis County Assessor. She also received the St. Louis Business Journal’s “40 under 40” award in 2007 and was featured as a “St. Louis Character” in 2010. In 2010, Jasha acted as an immigration expert live on election night for the local PBS station (Nine Network). Jasha also appeared in several short videos for the Nine Network on immigration issues, called Homeland Roundtable.
Jasha is the mother of 5 children. She lives in St. Louis with her three boys. Two of her boys are twins and created at the same time as Noah and Genesis. The other youngest one has Down’s Syndrome and is a happy healthy boy. Noah and Genesis are currently in a cryobank in Pennsylvania. Jasha also enjoys running, working out, writing music and playing her guitar.