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Dave Starr
F L I N T O I D
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LOS ANGELES
Plea deal in death of infant found in trash can
Associated Press
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
(05-21) 04:00 PDT Los Angeles - --
A Montana woman whose newborn son was found dead in a trash bin near the University of Southern California campus in 2005 pleaded no contest to child endangerment Tuesday after four attempts to charge her with murder were dismissed.
Holly Ashcraft, 23, entered the plea in Superior Court to the charge and a special allegation that the endangerment resulted in death.
Under a plea agreement, she will be sentenced June 27 to time already served - about 30 days of jail time and about 695 days of electronic monitoring. She also will be placed on five years' probation, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.
Judge Kathleen Kennedy warned Ashcraft she could face up to 10 years in prison if she violates probation.
It was "a fair ending to a tragic situation," said her attorney, Mark Geragos.
A homeless man said he found the dead baby on Oct. 10, 2005, in a cardboard box in a trash bin behind a restaurant-bar that was a popular hangout for students at USC, where Ashcraft was studying architecture.
DNA testing showed the child was Ashcraft's. A coroner's investigation determined the infant was born alive and died from prematurity and other, unspecified factors.
Ashcraft, from Billings, Mont., was in her third-year at USC and on scholarship at the time of her arrest. She was suspended by the university pending the outcome of the case.
In April 2004, Ashcraft went to a Los Angeles hospital because she was bleeding, and doctors determined she had given birth. She said she had given birth to a stillborn child but no body was found and she was not arrested.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/21/BAMU10PRG1.DTL
This article appeared on page B - 5 of the San Francisco Chronicle |
_________________
I used to care, but I take a pill for that now.
Pushing buttons sure can be fun.
When a lion wants to go somewhere, he doesn’t worry about how many hyenas are in the way.
Paddle faster, I hear banjos. |
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Tue May 27, 2008 1:53 pm |
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Demeralda
F L I N T O I D
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Sad all around.
Does CA have those "no questions asked" depots where you can drop off a baby? |
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I'm no model lady. A model's just an imitation of the real thing. - Mae West |
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Tue May 27, 2008 2:00 pm |
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teylyn1203
F L I N T O I D
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Wow......Does California not have the "Safe Delivery Act"???
It is unbelievable that this woman was not charged with murder and put in jail. As a college student, she had to have known of resources to assist her with either supporting the child, upon birth, or adoption services.
California should really look into establishing some type of act, so that woman are not allowed to get away with such a CRIME!! This woman should be authorized to participate in psychological assessments, as welll as mental health services. She obviously has a problem, if she was able to do such a horrific thing to an innocent infant.
What does this teach our younger females...that it's okay to get pregnant, give birth and put the baby in a dumpster??? That's ridiculous! |
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Tue Jun 10, 2008 9:36 pm |
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Demeralda
F L I N T O I D
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It doesn't teach them anything. People don't see stories like this and internalize them... "wow, now I know what to do when I get knocked up!"
Of course not.
I'm more concerned that a 23 year old who is in college (and a decent college at that) isn't aware of options... |
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I'm no model lady. A model's just an imitation of the real thing. - Mae West |
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Wed Jun 11, 2008 7:45 am |
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