GUILTY FL - Lakeland girl, 14, charged with killing newborn son, 19 Sept 2012

[lisalei321]

Not sure how I feel about this.

I did not get the feeling she was using the scissors to stab the baby, but rather to get the baby out. I think she must have been in an absolute panic. There are too many variables with girls that age to say that just because she was 14 she was old enough to do the right thing. I know lots of 14 year old girls and some act like they are 11 while others are much more mature.

One thing I am confused about, if this was so premeditated, WHY did she leave the baby IN HER ROOM for 3 days?? Why would she not have gotten rid of the baby in those 3 days? What did she expect was going to happen??

The fact that an older sister may have been disowned for getting pregnant bothers me a great deal. She had to have been absolutely terrified giving birth, I really don't know what was in her head at that time or why she felt she had to strangle her baby, but the fact that she just left him in her room for 3 days tells
me that perhaps she did not think this through or plan it..

As far as Alyssa Bustamante, that girl dug two graves, lured a child into the woods, killed and buried her after planning it all. She is nothing like this girl we are discussing here. Otherwise she would have had to plan on getting pregnant just to kill her baby to "see what it felt like to kill someone".

From what I know of this case so far, I do not feel she should be tried as an adult.

You've expressed the same feelings I have about this case.

I also want to know why the mom didn't seek medical treatment for her.

 

[Shelby2]

You've expressed the same feelings I have about this case.

I also want to know why the mom didn't seek medical treatment for her.

I know, relatives confronted her, other KIDS noticed, but not the parents??

Also, after the second trimester, those HCG levels drop which will result in a negative pregnancy test.

 

[Shelby2]

Thanks was not enough. I saw the mugshot of this sicko and she needs to be locked up because she will offend again. Pure psychopath, no remorse on her face, only defiance.

I didn't know those facts could be ascertained by looking at a mugshot.

 

[Mama-cita]

I didn't know those facts could be ascertained by looking at a mugshot.

If you will note in my siggy line, everything I post is MY opinion, show me where I said "facts", IMO the girl looks evil. Yes some people look evil and remorseless. Casey Anthony, Ted Bundy, Karla Homolka, this girl, lots of people look evil. Also, anyone who could stab and strangle a defenseless newborn is beyond psychopath.

 

[jjenny]

I know, relatives confronted her, other KIDS noticed, but not the parents??

Also, after the second trimester, those HCG levels drop which will result in a negative pregnancy test.

Her mother allowed her to take the tests in private. So most likely she never actually did what she was supposed to in order to take a pregnancy test. Sheriff thinks her mother was in a complete denial. It sure sounds like that to me.

 

[Shelby2]

Her mother allowed her to take the tests in private. So most likely she never actually did what she was supposed to in order to take a pregnancy test. Sheriff thinks her mother was in a complete denial. It sure sounds like that to me.

It's strange, when they were talking about this on Nancy Grace, she said that this girl had a very supportive family, that they said they would have taken care of her and the baby. But I have also read where one daughter was disowned...
But yes I agree she was in DEEP denial.

 

[Shelby2]

If you will note in my siggy line, everything I post is MY opinion, show me where I said "facts", IMO the girl looks evil. Yes some people look evil and remorseless. Casey Anthony, Ted Bundy, Karla Homolka, this girl, lots of people look evil. Also, anyone who could stab and strangle a defenseless newborn is beyond psychopath.

Oh, I always forget about those siggy lines...she looked scared to me, but hard to tell from a pic(for me anyway).

 

[Mama-cita]

Oh, I always forget about those siggy lines...she looked scared to me, but hard to tell from a pic(for me anyway).

No prob :blowkiss: maybe I'm jaded by the strangling and stabbing of the newborn detail. Something in her eyes reminded me of Karla Homolka. Or a case up in PA where an 11 year old shot his 9 month pregnant future step mother, Jordan Brown, his mugshot looked defiant and remorseless to me as well. I read a study about sociopathic kids and how they can be identified from a very early age. psychiatrists are studying them because apparently 85% of incarcerated people are sociopaths, which is a dichotomy since the disorder itself is present in a very small percentage of the general (non-incarcerated) population.

 

[Trident]

I can remember being 14 years old. I would have been horrified, terrified; my whole destroyed future would have flashed before my eyes had I been in that predicament. I feel empathy for this child, as well as the baby who died before he had ever lived.

I find this such a sad situation, although as someone pointed out earlier, she was not the first to be in this mess, nor will she be the last.

Compassion is needed, not hate. There but for the grace of God go us and/or our daughters or grandaughters.

I feel sadness, not hate; I have no need to condemn or name call a child I do not know. I have never walked in her shoes and I thank God for that. Jesus forgave sinners, God forgave David who sent Bathsheba's husband to the front lines. Can we, imperfect as we all are, do any less? Let he who is without sin. . .

My opinion only

 

[jjenny]

How is her future would be destroyed? All she had to do is to drop the child at a hospital or a fire station. Nobody is demanding she had to raise the child. Police interviewed her and say she told them she was aware of other options available to her.

 

[Trident]

How is her future would be destroyed? All she had to do is to drop the child at a hospital or a fire station. Nobody is demanding she had to raise the child.

At fourteen she probably didn't know that. From all the cases we read about here, it seems a lot of older women don't know about it either. H e l l, if that would have happened to me a few years earlier, I wouldn't have known about it, and I'm neither naive nor stupid.

I see the post has changed since I answered. Was the part about her knowing the alternatives in the first link? I didn't see it. If not, do you have a current link?

 

[Shelby2]

Even though there were other options available, it seems she was desperate to hide this pregnancy from her parents. She would have had to tell them for any of them to work. It's sad she felt that she had not one adult to turn to. And tragic for the baby.

 

[not_my_kids]

To me, and probably just me, this whole story sounds like it's chock-full of victims. The baby, the fourteen year old....to me, they are on about the same level.

I am starting to believe that when a minor child murders their baby, the parents of the minor child should be immediately and automatically charged with at the least neglect. Because even if you don't notice that they are getting bigger, you would notice that they are eating more, their sleeping habits and style of dress are changing. Maybe if we force some parental involvement here, there will be fewer of these cases. MOO.

 

[IWannaKnow]

At fourteen she probably didn't know that. From all the cases we read about here, it seems a lot of older women don't know about it either. H e l l, if that would have happened to me a few years earlier, I wouldn't have known about it, and I'm neither naive nor stupid.

I see the post has changed since I answered. Was the part about her knowing the alternatives in the first link? I didn't see it. If not, do you have a current link?

I know this post wasn't to me but it is in the affidavit Trident.

http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/442373-cassidy-goodsons-affidavit.html#document/p1

She stated it to the police. I suspect she knew the alternatives because of her sister getting pregnant but clearly she didn't feel those were workable for her. She didn't want to change the relationship with her mother.....there has been no mention of her biological father, perhaps she felt her mother was all she had and didn't want her to think less of her. IDK. Just because Mom "stood by" the sister doesn't mean she still feels the same way about her KWIM?

I have nothing but pity for BOTH children...CG and the baby. ITA with you about being in complete horror finding herself in that situation and at 14 her mind couldn't comprehend that there really was a way out of it....so very sad for everyone involved. So many people want to equate her having sex with being fully aware and cognizant of all the ramifications of that act, well, I don't believe that. Every teen is different, some are far more mature than others.

 

[IWannaKnow]

Not sure how I feel about this.

I did not get the feeling she was using the scissors to stab the baby, but rather to get the baby out. I think she must have been in an absolute panic. There are too many variables with girls that age to say that just because she was 14 she was old enough to do the right thing. I know lots of 14 year old girls and some act like they are 11 while others are much more mature.

One thing I am confused about, if this was so premeditated, WHY did she leave the baby IN HER ROOM for 3 days?? Why would she not have gotten rid of the baby in those 3 days? What did she expect was going to happen??

The fact that an older sister may have been disowned for getting pregnant bothers me a great deal. She had to have been absolutely terrified giving birth, I really don't know what was in her head at that time or why she felt she had to strangle her baby, but the fact that she just left him in her room for 3 days tells
me that perhaps she did not think this through or plan it..

As far as Alyssa Bustamante, that girl dug two graves, lured a child into the woods, killed and buried her after planning it all. She is nothing like this girl we are discussing here. Otherwise she would have had to plan on getting pregnant just to kill her baby to "see what it felt like to kill someone".

From what I know of this case so far, I do not feel she should be tried as an adult.

:goodpost:
Thank you Shelby2. Exactly what I've been trying to say, only not nearly as well.

ITA about the scissors. I think they were simply what she at hand in the bathroom, something she could reach to use basically as forceps. A 100# girl giving birth to her first child at 9.5#'s, completely unaided....I think she was trying to speed the delivery along. The affidavit states they were subscapular and head wounds. I think she was having trouble delivering the shoulders. And once the baby was out and she had seen the amount of damage she did trying to get it out.....what do you think Mom would say then???

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Voluntary+manslaughter
BBM

In most jurisdictions, voluntary manslaughter consists of an intentional killing that is accompanied by additional circumstances that mitigate, but do not excuse, the killing. The most common type of voluntary manslaughter occurs when a defendant is provoked to commit the Homicide. It is sometimes described as a heat of passion killing. In most cases, the provocation must induce rage or anger in the defendant, although some cases have held that fright, terror, or desperation will suffice.

 

[jjenny]

What would the mom say then? Once mom saw the blood she took her 14 year old to the hospital for the supposed "miscarriage."
So I have no clue as to what you think mom would say or do if she found out her daughter had a baby. I presume if baby wasn't killed mom would take him to the hospital too.
And please, I hope you aren't really suggesting that the infant "provoked her to do the homicide."
That's absurd.

 

[jjenny]

And another thing. I don't understand why the idea that she had an older sister who also got pregnant is discussed here as a fact. As far as I can tell it comes from anonymous comments someone left under a news story. Therefore it might be completely false. And certainly should be discussed as a fact unless there is a link provided to an msm source.

 

[likeafox]

I am withholding judgment on the girl herself until we know more. But with regard to understanding the alternatives, I think there is a difference between knowing abstractly there exists such a thing as adoption, and actually knowing the logistics of how to arrange one. I've no personal experience with it, but I can't imagine your average young teenager would have any idea how to navigate that system with zero parental support or guidance.

I'd never heard of safe haven laws until a public policy class in college. I've met 20-year-olds who didn't know how to take public transportation. I'm not exonerating the girl, but I also don't believe it's reasonable to expect that every pregnant teenager is Juno.

 

[IWannaKnow]

What would the mom say then? Once mom saw the blood she took her 14 year old to the hospital for the supposed "miscarriage."
So I have no clue as to what you think mom would say or do if she found out her daughter had a baby. I presume if baby wasn't killed mom would take him to the hospital too.
And please, I hope you aren't really suggesting that the infant "provoked her to do the homicide."
That's absurd.

Thank you for taking what I said out of context. My exact statement was:

And once the baby was out and she had seen the amount of damage she did trying to get it out.....what do you think Mom would say then???

She didn't want to ruin her relationship with her mother simply telling her she was pregnant. What do you think it would do to the relationship when her mother found out that she was not only pregnant but had seriously damaged the baby giving birth to it? Hence....what do you think Mom would say then??? I'm trying to think like a 14 year old, not an outraged adult. IF the 14 year old I know (now 22) felt she had to lie to me to that extent, she would definitely try to hide/cover up the result of that. I'm not saying the baby "provoked her to to do homicide", I'm saying she was continuing to cover up what she saw as a monumental mistake. She could clearly see how much she hurt the child birthing it, that would be impossible to miss and I believe she thought Mom would be even more angry about that. :twocents:

Obviously I don't know exactly what happened any more than you do because neither of us were there. We are both GUESSING. You seem to think that Mom taking her to the doctor once she found all the blood in the bathroom clears her of all culpability. I say if she had been more proactive all that blood wouldn't have been in the bathroom to begin with and you and I wouldn't be having this conversation.

 

[IWannaKnow]

And another thing. I don't understand why the idea that she had an older sister who also got pregnant is discussed here as a fact. As far as I can tell it comes from anonymous comments someone left under a news story. Therefore it might be completely false. And certainly should be discussed as a fact unless there is a link provided to an msm source.

http://www.abcactionnews.com/dpp/ne...-with-murdering-her-newborn-boy#ixzz27otWDDJ7

Williamson and several other neighbors told ABC Action News the teen had a sister who got pregnant at a similar age and was kicked out of the house. It is possible the teen thought her parents would do the same to her, Williamson explained.

In 911 calls released late Friday night, a family member is heard telling a dispatcher, "She is saying she didn't know what to do but she does. She, uh, her sister got pregnant and 18 and her mother stood by her you know."