I have a case set for trial in October where a 26 year old woman delivered a baby in her bathtub and hid it in a cabinet for 6 days. Her mother found the baby when she cleaned the bathroom. The defendant never told anyone she was pregnant and never attempted to receive medical care. She insists the baby was stillborn. The baby had the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck and was at 41-42 weeks. The ME can only say the cause of death is undetermined. Has anyone else prosecuted a case like this?

We had an eerily similar situation here in Amarillo a few years ago. The mother gave birth in an alley, put the child's body in a dumpster and later claimed she never realized she was pregnant and that the child was stillborn. Pathologist could not find evidence to definitively dispute the mother's story about the child being stillborn. She was charged with Abuse of Corpse and eventually pled for the maximum sentence (a year in jail), if my memory is correct.


This child's death really bothered me. A number of citizens, including myself, attended his funeral because it seemed wrong to just put his coffin in the ground without some sort of recognition of his existence - albeit brief - on this earth. I hope I never see a coffin that small again.

I was not the prosecutor assigned to the case, and I can not recall the defendant's name off-hand. However, if it would be helpful for you to talk to the prosecutor who handled the case or learn more information about our case, email me, and I'll give you whatever information I can. Johncoyle@co.potter.tx.us. Good luck.

Just thinking out loud and wondering whether Tampering with Evidence (3rd Degree variety)would fit with these facts?

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The defendant never told anyone she was pregnant and never attempted to receive medical care.

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This phenomenon has always fascinated me. How is it possible for someone to be carrying a full-term baby and not show??? Even the largest of large women must exhibit some physiological changes in appearance, no? I am always baffled by this, especially when it's the mother herself who claims not to know she was pregnant!

Shannon, not that you are an expert on teenage girls (if you are, I know a few people who'd like to talk to you), but having had one of these cases before, I think it's sometimes a combination of factors, the first being that often teenage girls have very tight abdominal muscles that keep them from looking like they're smuggling a basketball. So sometimes they don't protrude that much. Then combine that with baggy, loose hip-hop fashion, a little extra poundage to begin with, parents who don't pay a lot of attention to their kids, and you have a secret pregnancy. In my case, the boyfriend said he had sex with her when she was 6 months pregnant and she didn't look pregnant.

I have a case like yours. The baby was found the next day in the trash so maybe the ME's report is more helpful. It's set for trial in Oct. I found an OBGYN who does high risk deliveries and has tons of experience with babies who is going to testify that based on the ME's autopsy the little girl would have lived had she been delivered at the hospital. Both of them will testify that the baby died from bleeding out of the untied umbilical cord and from the need to be kept warm etc. I also had lots of help from other prosecutors who suggested that I charge the mentally challenged Defendant with Injury to a Child. There is a thread here somewhere that has the names of the people that offered to help.I might be able to find a name if you want to call. Guys the next time you are in a McDonald's look at some of the women and you can see how some women's body types hide pregnancy with fat as well as muscle. Good luck!Have you recieved letters from people wondering why you care since there are people killing babies everyday with abortions????

Thank you all for the information. I now have more time to prepare because the case got reset, so maybe I can get some more posts.
For the person wondering about hiding the pregnancy, in this case there is by no means a "taut teenage tummy." This is a 28 year old woman who is taller than 6 ft. and weighs over 200 lbs. Her mother noticed she gained over 40 lbs., but my Defendant explained she had been under a lot of stress because of her PTA duties. (While the baby was in her cabinet she went to track and field day and a PTA meeting)...