OH - Annabelle Richardson, newborn, found in shallow grave, Carlisle, 7 May 2017 #1

[iluvmua]

I am ready for them to get into what was found on the phones etc and computers etc.

 

[iluvmua]

I think her own words is what will get her convicted in the end.

Jmo

 

[Fidobell]

I'm not familiar with this case, just came across the live trial feed and watched the video of her telling the parents what happened. Didn't read back either.

IMO, the Mom is cold and seems to withhold love and approval from this young girl. Weird dynamic to watch. Can I ask those of you who have followed to chime in and share your opinion?

ETA: trying to make sense of the reason this young girl couldn't go to her Mom when she found out she was pregnant. The act of delivering and burying a baby and not seeking help from her parents shocks me. I could not imagine my own daughter carrying that alone.

I think her mum knew but not dad . Strange dynamic from the 3 of them . Seemed no real interaction , mum had her own agenda , Skylar had hers and dad seemed to be the only one focusing on her LE interview and her breaking the law . Although his later concentrated focus on BC pills looked like he was trying to bat the blame from his family onto doctor .
As a mum of a 21 yr old daughter, in similar circumstances there would be physical contact between DD me and dad . We would be huddled together , comforting and reassuring . I certainly wouldn't be worried about the neigbours .
Not once did they ask how her health was I find that concerning .

 

[osu]

I am ready for them to get into what was found on the phones etc and computers etc.

I’m interested in seeing the 2nd police interview. Also wondering if Kim Richardson will be called to the stand to testify? Should be very interesting questioning if she does.

JMO

 

[fred&edna]

Finally I've found a place that discusses this case with a focus on the actual evidence! I've read the entire thread and it's been a good read people!

I'm a senior law clerk at one of the courts of appeal in the Netherlands, so seeing the differences in how the trial is conducted in the USA (common law) as compared to a criminal trial in the Netherlands (civil law) has been really interesting to watch.

Welcome to our little corner of the world! We are glad to have you here.
Please feel free to post your thoughts and opinions, and/or any differing opinions!

 

[fred&edna]

I’m interested in seeing the 2nd police interview. Also wondering if Kim Richardson will be called to the stand to testify? Should be very interesting questioning if she does.

JMO

Me too, me too!

 

[Seattle1]

Skylar told detectives she searched internet how to end pregnancy.

The first thing that comes up in google search is citation from Planned Parenthood for combined meds mifepristone and misoprostol (commonly known as the "abortion pill"):

First, you take a pill called mifepristone. Pregnancy needs a hormone called progesterone to grow normally. Mifepristone blocks your body's own progesterone, stopping the pregnancy from growing.

As there was no medical reason for Skylar to ingest birth control pills while pregnant, I believe she read "progesterone" and mistakenly believed taking the pills would end her pregnancy.

Clearly her doctor didn't tell her to begin taking them while pregnant -- he only gave her the script because her mom was in the waiting room expecting Skylar to walk out of the clinic with it!

I get the feeling the doctor will be back on the witness stand before the trial concludes.

MOO

 

[osu]

I'm not familiar with this case, just came across the live trial feed and watched the video of her telling the parents what happened. Didn't read back either.

IMO, the Mom is cold and seems to withhold love and approval from this young girl. Weird dynamic to watch. Can I ask those of you who have followed to chime in and share your opinion?

ETA: trying to make sense of the reason this young girl couldn't go to her Mom when she found out she was pregnant. The act of delivering and burying a baby and not seeking help from her parents shocks me. I could not imagine my own daughter carrying that alone.

Hi Knox,
I think her mom is a narcissistic control freak, TBH. To her it’s all about appearances and control.
BSR’s friends have spoken out and said KR was always very controlling, always critical of BSR about her weight and how she looked and dressed which in all likelihood is what lead to BSR’s eating disorder.

Very evident just by the few things she (KR) said in the interrogation room after just learning her only daughter gave birth and buried her baby in the back yard. No empathy, no compassion whatsoever.

IIRC, (there’s a quote around here somewhere) of the mother in the interrogation room, saying;
“I don't deserve this! I did everything right!”


Here’s a couple of good articles that will give a quick overview of the Skylar Richardson case.

Brooke Skylar Richardson Stillborn Baby Murder Trial - Teen Charged With Killing Infant


What you should know about Carlisle's baby murder trial


And here are all of the videos, in order, starting with the first police interview.

WATCH all videos from Brooke Skylar Richardson trial | Highlights, testimony, interrogations


JMO

 

[MTW2011]

Someone asked above, her mom was subpoenaed by the State to testify yes. That’s also why her father has been seen in the courtroom but her mom has been made to stay outside.

 

[osu]

Someone asked above, her mom was subpoenaed by the State to testify yes. That’s also why her father has been seen in the courtroom but her mom has been made to stay outside.

Yes, they said on CourtTV yesterday that she’s been sitting outside the courtroom on a bench in the hallway every day. She has a friend or a family member sitting with her.

JMO

 

[gitana1]

March 23, 2018 - Good Housekeeping

According to court documents filed by Rittgers and confirmed by Kim, sometime in the night, Skylar decided to name her baby Annabelle. "When she saw her, she thought of how pure and beautiful she was," Kim tells me. "I'd never heard the name before."

Why Is This 19-Year-Old on Trial for Murder?

I agree - defense likely asked them to come up with a name when they filed court documents. BSR never told the detectives she named her infant (during interrogations shown thus far - baby is "it"). MOO

No one tosses their baby who they think is "so pure and beautiful", naked into a dirt pit. They at the least would wrap her in a towel.

 

[iluvmua]

Yes, that’s what I was wondering? The prosecution surely would’ve objected if it wasn't her?
Does the defense have to present all of their discovery, exhibits, etc., to the prosecution before trial? If so, I would think they would’ve seen it then and objected.

If it is BSR and the photos were taken just 6 months apart, she must have had some good hair extensions or her hair grows really fast.

JMO

I don't think the prosecution could object to the photo even if it might be a picture of her mom because that would let the jury know that the defense is lying. Jmo

 

[Hope4More]

I have a Q: If next week we watch more of the interviews with the police and she ends up saying something like:
The baby was alive, it moved, it cried, I might have squeezed her too hard and I killed her etc. OR
There is a text message(s) where she admits to killing her daughter then can the jury come back with guilty on the aggravated murder charge?

The State's opening already revealed what Skylar "confessed" to during the 2nd interrogation:

1. That the baby was alive for about 5 minutes.
2. That she saw the baby's arms move.
3. That she heard the baby "gurgle."
4. That she squeezed the baby hard and might have killed her.
5. That she used a lighter on the baby's foot in order to "cremate her a little bit."

The defense has been & will continue to argue that Skylar's confession was coerced (false confession); that LE's pursuit of her after the first interview was recklessly hasty & predicated on the erroneous premise that the baby's bones were "charred;" and that there is no physical evidence the baby was born alive, much less that Skylar killed her, much less that the baby was alive and that Skylar knowingly killed her.

The jury will have to decide whether or not they believe Skylar's confession was coerced. If they believe it was, and especially if they also find her sympathetic, imo there is little to no possibility they'll convict her of aggravated murder.

To convict her of aggravated murder the jury will have to believe: that the baby was born alive; that Skylar knew the baby was born alive; and that Skylar intentionally killed her.

 

[iluvmua]

The State's opening already revealed what Skylar "confessed" to during the 2nd interrogation:

1. That the baby was alive for about 5 minutes.
2. That she saw the baby's arms move.
3. That she heard the baby "gurgle."
4. That she squeezed the baby hard and might have killed her.
5. That she used a lighter on the baby's foot in order to "cremate her a little bit."

The defense has been & will continue to argue that Skylar's confession was coerced (false confession); that LE's pursuit of her after the first interview was recklessly hasty & predicated on the erroneous premise that the baby's bones were "charred;" and that there is no physical evidence the baby was born alive, much less that Skylar killed her, much less that the baby was alive and that Skylar knowingly killed her.

The jury will have to decide whether or not they believe Skylar's confession was coerced. If they believe it was, and especially if they also find her sympathetic, imo there is little to no possibility they'll convict her of aggravated murder.

To convict her of aggravated murder the jury will have to believe: that the baby was born alive; that Skylar knew the baby was born alive; and that Skylar intentionally killed her.

We have not seen the full interview where she says all that.

The judge said that the opening statements are not evidence.

 

[iluvmua]

That is why I am waiting to see if the prosecution has those texts messages from 2017 where she tells her mother how happy she is and what she texted her boyfriend and what else was found on all of their electronics.


Jmo

 

[gitana1]

Thanks for trying! I tried to look it up also but didn’t have any luck.

It depends on the rules of the state. Some require that all experts be exchanged before trial. Some require the defense to turn over as alibi evidence prior to trial.

ETA: I see Hope4more answered about Ohio. I haven't read the code.

 

[Hope4More]

We have not seen the full interview where she says all that.

The judge said that the opening statements are not evidence.

Not yet....I'm definitely looking forward to watching however much of the interrogation is presented.

Right- opening statements/arguments aren't considered evidence, but openings are used to frame each side's case, and both the State & defense typically include previews of evidence they will bring in later via witnesses.

 

[gitana1]

I'm not familiar with this case, just came across the live trial feed and watched the video of her telling the parents what happened. Didn't read back either.

IMO, the Mom is cold and seems to withhold love and approval from this young girl. Weird dynamic to watch. Can I ask those of you who have followed to chime in and share your opinion?

ETA: trying to make sense of the reason this young girl couldn't go to her Mom when she found out she was pregnant. The act of delivering and burying a baby and not seeking help from her parents shocks me. I could not imagine my own daughter carrying that alone.

The case fits the demographic of women who kill their newborns. They conceal the pregnancy and birth from their mothers due to shame and fear of punishment/rejection.

This gal apparently had eating disorders and her mother was obsessed with appearance and her weight. Note she says "I though I had a perfect life" when she confronts her daughter. The parents also accuse the daughter of lying so much they never know what truth.

I think this young woman was tightly controlled by her parents and coldly scrutinized and demeaned by her mother. She probably had to lie a lot to avoid harsh consequences like rejection and shame.

The kid seemed more concerned in the hours after the birth with communicating to her mother that her stomach looked flatter than with the horror of having a baby alone while the family slept and discarding its little naked body in a shallow dirt pit.

Which makes me think. What the hell did her mother think about the fact that her kid seemed to lose a ton of weight overnight?

The family seems exceedingly dysfunctional and creepy to me. Someone mentioned Casey Anthony's family dynamic as being similar. I agree. I also think about the family of that young monster who convinced her boyfriend to kill himself.

 

[Seattle1]

Skylar told detectives she searched internet how to end pregnancy.

The first thing that comes up in google search is citation from Planned Parenthood for combined meds mifepristone and misoprostol (commonly known as the "abortion pill"):

First, you take a pill called mifepristone. Pregnancy needs a hormone called progesterone to grow normally. Mifepristone blocks your body's own progesterone, stopping the pregnancy from growing.

As there was no medical reason for Skylar to ingest birth control pills while pregnant, I believe she read "progesterone" and mistakenly believed taking the pills would end her pregnancy.

Clearly her doctor didn't tell her to begin taking them while pregnant -- he only gave her the script because her mom was in the waiting room expecting Skylar to walk out of the clinic with it!

I get the feeling the doctor will be back on the witness stand before the trial concludes.

MOO

ETA: Interrogation video @15:00 -17:00 BSR talks about searching pills to take.
(too late to edit post)...

 

[iluvmua]

Not yet....I'm definitely looking forward to watching however much of the interrogation is presented.

Right- opening statements/arguments aren't considered evidence, but openings are used to frame each side's case, and both the State & defense typically include previews of evidence they will bring in later via witnesses.

Correct