A Nebraska teen has been denied bond and ordered to be kept in prison after a November 16 hearing. The Sheridan County 16-year-old was charged with first-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony on November 9, after her mother revealed in a sobbing confession to police that her grandson had been “hurt.” The grisly crime scene was discovered by police after the grandparents escorted first responders to their daughter’s bedroom where the daughter was found crouching in a corner.
The teen’s father had greeted police at the door, stating only that the baby had been stillborn and that it was “too late.”
But reports indicate that after giving birth to an otherwise healthy baby, the teen appears to have used the family’s boning knife to slice the newborn’s throat so deeply that his windpipe was severed. The newborn had additional multiple stab wounds in his side.
It was the grandfather who found his grandson stuffed in an empty dog food bag in his daughter’s closet. He also later located the weapon taken from the kitchen earlier in the day. A grisly scene was described in the police report, including a large pool of blood on the carpet and blood smeared on the walls.
Nebraska has a “Safe Haven Law” that permits a person to submit an infant up to 30 days old to any medical professional without risk of prosecution. L.B. 157 states “No person shall be prosecuted for any crime based solely upon the act of leaving a child in the custody of an employee on duty at a hospital licensed by the State of Nebraska. The hospital shall promptly contact appropriate authorities to take custody of the child.” The law was updated to permit only children up to 30 days old to be legally abandoned. According to recent hospital statistics, there are over 27 hospitals in Nebraska, a state where preborn children are protected from abortion after 12 weeks.
There is never a necessity to kill a child, born or preborn.
The penalty for first degree murder if convicted as an adult is up to life in prison. Nebraska does not utilize the death penalty.
