PA - Leon Katz, infant, murdered, and twin, injured by babysitter, Pittsburgh- June 24, 2024

[Mack the Knife]

I am honestly surprised that the charge is not manslaughter. I think they would be guaranteed a conviction on that vs. outright murder, especially if there are no cams.

And for the surviving baby, it seems like a case of he said/she said, so hard to prove beyond a reasonable doubt, imo.

Unless there's a lot more evidence in both cases.

Imo.

I don't particularly understand the legal machinations or how things work in each specific state, but it may be the case that prosecutors end up adding on lesser charges and letting the jury choose. Karen Read was charged with both manslaughter and second-degree murder. Nicolae Miu was charged with first degree intentional homicide but jurors were told to also consider lesser charges, and ultimately convicted of first degree reckless homicide.

Maybe they'll be able to prove that capital punishment is appropriate here, but I think it is a tactic, and one I find a bit unseemly. I'm not sure if there is a better term for it, but it is related to anchoring: the prosecution sets the tone by saying this is a death penalty case, the jury listens to the evidence and thinks the accused is responsible for something but isn't confident it was murder, so when the prosecution offers a lesser charge, the jury takes the out as a compromise even if they aren't completely comfortable with that lesser charge. If the prosecution had started with the lesser charge only, the jury might blame them for not proving their case.

 

[I am not Sherlock H.]

CNN August 28, 2024 article by Faith Karimi entitled ‘A woman allegedly killed her friend’s newborn twin and abused the other. Prosecutors will seek the death penalty’:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/us/phd-student-baby-death-nicole-virzi-cec/index.html

Of note:
prosecutors seek the death penalty;

quoted in the article:
‘Leon’s CT scan showed a severe skull fracture to the left side of the head, along with multiple brain bleeds. An autopsy determined that they were caused by blunt force trauma and were consistent with child abuse.’;

‘“The decision to seek such is made only after careful and serious consideration of whether we believe we have evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the aggravating factors outweigh potential mitigating factors,” Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said in a statement to CNN.’

Will be interesting once additional evidence possessed by the prosecution becomes apparent. MOO

 

[Gemmie]

CNN August 28, 2024 article by Faith Karimi entitled ‘A woman allegedly killed her friend’s newborn twin and abused the other. Prosecutors will seek the death penalty’:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/us/phd-student-baby-death-nicole-virzi-cec/index.html

Of note:
prosecutors seek the death penalty;

quoted in the article:
‘Leon’s CT scan showed a severe skull fracture to the left side of the head, along with multiple brain bleeds. An autopsy determined that they were caused by blunt force trauma and were consistent with child abuse.’;

‘“The decision to seek such is made only after careful and serious consideration of whether we believe we have evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the aggravating factors outweigh potential mitigating factors,” Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said in a statement to CNN.’

Will be interesting once additional evidence possessed by the prosecution becomes apparent. MOO

From the article you posted:

It’s unclear why she stated on the 911 call that the baby was in a bassinet while the complaint refers to a bouncer seat.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/us/phd-student-baby-death-nicole-virzi-cec/index.html

IMO it's because she couldn't remember what she said in the 911 call because her excuse was fabricated. All MOO.

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

From the article you posted:

It’s unclear why she stated on the 911 call that the baby was in a bassinet while the complaint refers to a bouncer seat.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/us/phd-student-baby-death-nicole-virzi-cec/index.html

IMO it's because she couldn't remember what she said in the 911 call because her excuse was fabricated. All MOO.

From the article:

"
Virzi told investigators that she’d spent part of the afternoon on June 15 with the family, according to the criminal complaint. She said she noticed injuries on Ari and notified his parents.

There was blood in his diaper and his penis was red and swollen, according to the criminal complaint. “She … photographed the injury and sent it to Ethan Katz,” it said.

Ari also had additional injuries, including scratches to his right cheek and bruises below his belly button, the criminal complaint said. The parents denied causing the injuries and said they first learned about them from Virzi.

“The parents … stated that prior to Virzi’s contact with the children, they (the twins) had no medical emergencies or treatment, other than routine medical care,” the criminal complaint stated.

Virzi’s attorney declined to comment on his client’s assertion that the injuries were caused by someone else. “We’re going to be litigating those elements at the appropriate place and time, which is in the court,” Shrager said."

I guess the parents were out for anniversary so she sent the photo? I'm a bit surprised she sent it to the dad not the mom. This case is so hard to read about. MOOO. The surviving twin will have trauma from all of this, pre-verbal trauma is hard to address. Just horrible. IMO.

 

[Mauig’ma]

I’m curious about blood in his diaper? “Red swollen penis”, but blood too? How? This is horrible whatever happened. I’m sickened by this

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

I’m curious about blood in his diaper? “Red swollen penis”, but blood too? How? This is horrible whatever happened. I’m sickened by this

Agree. It is depraved, to injure a baby in this way, and then what happened to his twin, beggars' belief. MOOO.

 

[SMK777]

From the article:

"
Virzi told investigators that she’d spent part of the afternoon on June 15 with the family, according to the criminal complaint. She said she noticed injuries on Ari and notified his parents.

There was blood in his diaper and his penis was red and swollen, according to the criminal complaint. “She … photographed the injury and sent it to Ethan Katz,” it said.

Ari also had additional injuries, including scratches to his right cheek and bruises below his belly button, the criminal complaint said. The parents denied causing the injuries and said they first learned about them from Virzi.

“The parents … stated that prior to Virzi’s contact with the children, they (the twins) had no medical emergencies or treatment, other than routine medical care,” the criminal complaint stated.

Virzi’s attorney declined to comment on his client’s assertion that the injuries were caused by someone else. “We’re going to be litigating those elements at the appropriate place and time, which is in the court,” Shrager said."

I guess the parents were out for anniversary so she sent the photo? I'm a bit surprised she sent it to the dad not the mom. This case is so hard to read about. MOOO. The surviving twin will have trauma from all of this, pre-verbal trauma is hard to address. Just horrible. IMO.

Sending the photo is very strange, because it implicates her immediately. What did she think the parents and medical authorities would conclude? And then the second baby with skull fractures? It’s just a very bizarre scenario.

 

[SMK777]

And yet seeing the photo, they left the other twin with her. So at that moment at least they did not connect the injury photo with anything she had done. Very strange…

 

[Cedars]

Sending the photo is very strange, because it implicates her immediately. What did she think the parents and medical authorities would conclude? And then the second baby with skull fractures? It’s just a very bizarre scenario.

It raises the possibility, to me, that she was potentially trying to implicate the mother. Or, more generally, using/abusing the children to ruin the couple's happy anniversary/happy life?

We see sometimes how, during or after a break-up, one parent kills their own child to cause pain to the other spouse. Just out of spite. A child of their own.

So perhaps there was an overwhelming secret hatred/jealousy of the parent(s) and she used the babies to get revenge?

This seems almost more possible to me than her anger being directed just at the children, since someone else's very young children can't usually cause the deep emotions involved in this level of violence.

JMO

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

Sending the photo is very strange, because it implicates her immediately. What did she think the parents and medical authorities would conclude? And then the second baby with skull fractures? It’s just a very bizarre scenario.

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

And yet seeing the photo, they left the other twin with her. So at that moment at least they did not connect the injury photo with anything she had done. Very strange…

All of it is, little of it makes sense. MOOO. And why nap with the baby unsecured? Particularly if parents at hospital with other baby? If she is from CA, would be earlier to her, no? And if she teaches spinning, fit and active, even stranger to be day napping while babysitting. MOOO.

 

[IDK]

I believe one article said the bouncer seat was 18” from the floor. I wonder if the baby was on a low surface like a coffee table and she was on a sofa and fell asleep?

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

I don't believe the baby fell out of the bouncer at all. JMOOO.

This, from CNN piece, is much more clearly worded than DM article and explains the basis for the prosecutor seeking DP. Seems unlikely to succeed, but, we will see what they can prove in court.

"But Virzi’s attorney said his client does not have a criminal record. The prosecutors plan to use her alleged abuse of Ari as her felony history in Leon’s death investigation, he said.

“They’re going to try to say she has a preexisting felony because of the other child being harmed,” Shrager said."

 

[DoctorRose]

I believe one article said the bouncer seat was 18” from the floor. I wonder if the baby was on a low surface like a coffee table and she was on a sofa and fell asleep?

I still don’t think that’s high enough to cause the injuries he had. JMO.

 

[SMK777]

It raises the possibility, to me, that she was potentially trying to implicate the mother. Or, more generally, using/abusing the children to ruin the couple's happy anniversary/happy life?

SBM
It sure seems so. She must have felt that somehow she wouldn’t be implicated herself, which of course was dead wrong.

 

[NCWatcher]

Double post. Sorry.

 

[NCWatcher]

I still don’t think that’s high enough to cause the injuries he had. JMO.

I don't know if 18" is high enough to cause the injury/injuries. But I'm also not sure we know

1. What the floor surface was. Seems there's a big difference between falling on padded carpet and falling on tile or even wood.

2. If the 18" measurement is to the bottom of the bouncer. If so, his head would be farther than 18" from the floor when in the bouncer.

Finally, do we know for sure if there was more than one injury to his head? From the CNN article posted above by @Gemmie, "Leon’s CT scan showed a severe skull fracture to the left side of the head, along with multiple brain bleeds." It sounds like there was one fracture although people here have referred to "fractures." I would think the multiple bleeds could develop from the trauma that caused one "severe fracture" but don't know that for sure.
MOO

 

[Cedars]

I still don’t think that’s high enough to cause the injuries he had. JMO.

Yes, I think that's the point of the measurement. The head trauma was much too serious to have been caused by a fall or other type of accident.

JMO

 

[SMK777]

Yes, I think that's the point of the measurement. The head trauma was much too serious to have been caused by a fall or other type of accident.

JMO

The defense will probably find experts to say otherwise.