No, seriously, WTF is wrong with people?!
May. 18th, 2007 08:08 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
silverthorneNewslink
05/18/2007 07:16:48 EST
Baby Found in Freezer; Pa. Woman Charged
By JOE MANDAK
Associated Press Writer
PITTSBURGH - A woman was charged with abuse of a corpse after police found the remains of a baby in her freezer.
Police charged Christine Hutchinson, 22, of Pittsburgh, after interviewing her Thursday evening, several hours after the remains were found in her apartment.
Officers got a tip from someone who knew Hutchinson that there was "possibly a baby that was dead and was in a freezer in an apartment in Bloomfield," a working-class neighborhood several miles east of downtown, Pittsburgh police Cmdr. Thomas Stangrecki said.
Detectives found what initially appeared to be a late-term fetus in a brown bag in the freezer, police said, though it wasn't immediately clear whether the remains resulted from a miscarriage, late-term abortion or a death shortly after birth.
But later, Lt. Daniel Herrmann said the abuse of a corpse charge applies only to human beings. Under the law, he said, a fetus is not considered a human being.
An autopsy was scheduled for Friday. Police said that they did not believe the death was recent but gave no further details.
Police also questioned the woman's ex-boyfriend but said they do not believe he was the father. He was not charged.
Hutchinson was in custody awaiting arraignment late Thursday. A criminal complaint and police affidavit were not immediately released.
It was not immediately known whether Hutchinson had an attorney.
Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
05/18/2007 07:16:48 EST
Baby Found in Freezer; Pa. Woman Charged
By JOE MANDAK
Associated Press Writer
PITTSBURGH - A woman was charged with abuse of a corpse after police found the remains of a baby in her freezer.
Police charged Christine Hutchinson, 22, of Pittsburgh, after interviewing her Thursday evening, several hours after the remains were found in her apartment.
Officers got a tip from someone who knew Hutchinson that there was "possibly a baby that was dead and was in a freezer in an apartment in Bloomfield," a working-class neighborhood several miles east of downtown, Pittsburgh police Cmdr. Thomas Stangrecki said.
Detectives found what initially appeared to be a late-term fetus in a brown bag in the freezer, police said, though it wasn't immediately clear whether the remains resulted from a miscarriage, late-term abortion or a death shortly after birth.
But later, Lt. Daniel Herrmann said the abuse of a corpse charge applies only to human beings. Under the law, he said, a fetus is not considered a human being.
An autopsy was scheduled for Friday. Police said that they did not believe the death was recent but gave no further details.
Police also questioned the woman's ex-boyfriend but said they do not believe he was the father. He was not charged.
Hutchinson was in custody awaiting arraignment late Thursday. A criminal complaint and police affidavit were not immediately released.
It was not immediately known whether Hutchinson had an attorney.
Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-05-18 03:51 pm (UTC)Still...I dunno. Guess this is where personal opinion and upbringing is clashing with a more moderate look to the situation, and I can cop to that. Personally, it would be nice to find out this was some sort of severe post-abortion/miscarriage reaction, as opposed to any other number of possibilities.
But again...
It's all sorts of squicks for me, from knowing we're no longer living in a primitive culture where holding onto a body for very long (even viewing reasons tend to be much shorter in length these days--a few days as opposed to a week or more), to knowing that it's both illegal and a biohazard to store a corpse like that.
Other than insanity or hiding, there's really no reason to hold onto a corpse like that. Especially in the United States...and in a city. And again, that's where I go 'WTF?'
no subject
Date: 2007-05-18 04:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-05-18 04:44 pm (UTC)...the education part? Not so sure about. PA and NJ both have (or had, anyway) really solid public education systems when it came to health matters--including starting on what sex is, what to do or not do, etc around the age of 10 or so (or that's when my class had it, anyway). Unless legislation has changed since then (entirely possible), or she went to a private school that excluded the info for religious or other reasons, she had the education if she went to school.