Jurors in Warren County, Ohio saw confession video on Monday in which murder defendant Brooke Skylar Richardson, 20, admitted to possibly playing a role in the death of her newborn daughter Annabelle. She suggested to investigators that she may have squeezed the girl too hard.
Richardson, then 18, allegedly discovered she was pregnant just over a week before giving birth. She lied to her mom about it, and tried to hide it, prosecutors said. She gave birth just a couple of days after prom, and secretly buried the baby’s remains in her family’s backyard. The defendant had a doctor’s appointment the month after, and the doctor reported what happened to police.
The defense said that the baby was stillborn. The prosecution conveyed Richardson as self-absorbed, and said she tried to burn the baby’s body.
As seen on video, the investigators tried to leverage the baby’s body against the defendant. The male detective told her that they couldn’t return the body yet because the investigation was ongoing.
“I feel like you have the ability to give us the truth so quickly to solve those questions,” he said.
They confronted her with the allegation that she tried to cremate the baby.
#SkylarRichardson – How long was the baby alive? Do you think it was 2 mins, 5 mins, 10 mins…?
Richardson, ” Five minutes…..”
Carter: Five minutes shew as alive?Richardson: “Maybe she was alive five minutes…” pic.twitter.com/5C4R8evxyC— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) September 9, 2019
Under questioning, Richardson said she lit the baby on fire.
What will Richardson’s attorneys do to undermine this apparent admission? Defense lawyer and Law&Crime Network host Linda Kenney Baden, who is unaffiliated with the case, suggested the possibility of a false confession.
BIG no no for detectives- double by 2 of them- 2 give answers 2 Q 2 anyone-especially an upset 18 year old that may be in postpartum depression- it feeds to wrongful confessions- see @innocence causes wrongful convictions- #SkylarRichardson “What fire?”she says @LawCrimeNetwork
— Linda Kenney Baden (@KenneyBaden) September 9, 2019
Note: male detective is the first one to mention the word “cremation” and God in the Bible and it’s ok- “ashes to ashes”. #SkylarRichardsoon @LawCrimeNetwork @cathyrusson Things experts note in false confessions.
— Linda Kenney Baden (@KenneyBaden) September 9, 2019
At the time of the confession, a doctor said that Annabelle’s bones appeared to be burnt, but she later walked back that claim. Under cross-examination, a forensic pathologist for the prosecution testified Friday that the autopsy didn’t establish if Annabelle was born alive or not.
[Screengrab via Law&Crime Network]
