Ohio cheerleader Skylar Richardson who buried her newborn in the backyard found not guilty of murder
Brooke Skylar Richardson, the cheerleader who buried her baby in the backyard after giving birth in secret, was found not guilty of murder, manslaughter, and child endangerment on September 12. The 20-year-old, if convicted of all charges, would have faced life imprisonment.
Richardson was also charged with tampering with evidence. However, the judge removed the count during the trial. The jury, after three hours of deliberation, found Richardson not guilty of murder, but she was convicted of gross abuse of a corpse and now faces a maximum prison sentence of one year.
The cheerleader broke into tears after her verdict was announced and told her parents "I love you" as she was led away in handcuffs. Her mother reportedly whispered back to her, saying: "We love you baby... it'll be OK." Richardson is scheduled to be sentenced on September 13, with a minimum sentence for the particular felony in Ohio being imprisonment for six months, WYKC reported.
Richardson's attorney, however, told reporters that they do not expect her to be sentenced to prison: "She's done enough time in this small town."
Richardson gave birth to baby girl Annabelle in the middle of the night in May 2017. She had reportedly not told her parents of her pregnancy and they claim they could not tell because her weight often fluctuated a lot. The 20-year-old gave birth to a stillborn in the toilet in the upstairs bathroom of her family home in Carlisle and soon buried the baby in her backyard. She was caught two months after the incident when she confessed to a gynecologist of what had happened.
Despite Richardson's claims, prosecutors believe that the baby was born alive and the cheerleader had killed the infant because she did not want her to intervene with her "perfect life." They also claimed that she set fire to Anabelle after a pathologist said that the bones found, after excavation, appeared charred. The pathologist later changed her claim. Richardson was interviewed by authorities for the second time, where she confessed that she attempted "to cremate her a little." Her attorneys later argued that the confession was coerced. The cheerleader had initially denied burning or harming the baby multiple times in the interview.
Prosecutors, in their closing argument on September 12, said it was "convenient" for her to have given birth to a stillborn. "All of the stars did not just align for her to have a stillborn child that she didn't want, told no one about, made no preparations for and concealed and buried her in the backyard, all so that she could maintain the appearance and image of her perfect life. That's ridiculous," one of the prosecutors said.
The prosecuting team also referred to a text message Richardson sent to her mother after delivering the baby, saying she was happy to have her "belly back."
"I'm literally speechless (sic) with how happy am... I am literally so excited now just for dinner to wear something cute yayyyy my belly is back and now I'm takin (sic) this opportunity to make it amazing," the message read.
The defense, however, stated that Richardon's mother Kim was obsessed with her daughter's weight and discussed it frequently. They also called on a psychologist who had treated Richardson when she was younger to testify, who said that she had been sexually abused by a 12-year-old boy, which eventually led her to develop a personality disorder and anorexia.