Resolved NC - Cumberland Co, 'Baby Michael' Wht/NtvMale Newborn 387UMNC, Mar'99 - N/A *arrest*

[borndem]

------ Mother Found and Arrested ------
​

21 years after 'Baby Michael' found dead, Cumberland authorities arrest mother

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Posted 56 minutes ago
Fayetteville, N.C. — A Burke County woman was arrested Thursday in the death of a newborn whom Cumberland County investigators named "Baby Michael" almost 21 years ago.


Deborah Riddle O’Conner, 54, was charged with first-degree murder and was being held without bond in the Cumberland County jail.

More here --
21 years after 'Baby Michael' found dead, Cumberland authorities arrest mother :: WRAL.com

 

[Vern]

Her Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/deborah.r....aTFB7WOTwMqgsP7GGlzrc_1WMu09ifgK8M4wZwkQpYFf9

Mugshot:
Deborah O’Conner, "Baby Michael" murder :: WRAL.com

And, case cracked using forensic geneaology. Note that her current husband believes this is "a witch hunt". Sigh - so tired of that terminology and its being accepted/allowed to become the norm.

21 years after 'Baby Michael' found dead, Cumberland authorities arrest mother :: WRAL.com

...
O'Conner's husband called the arrest "a witch hunt."

"I cannot stand that mug shot that they've got of her. I can't stand to look at it because that's not the Debbie I know," Charles O'Conner, who has been married to Deborah O'Conner for 10 years, told NBC affiliate WCNC in Charlotte.

...

Sheriff Ennis Wright said the DNA was linked to someone whose DNA was in a crime database, which then led investigators to O'Conner, but he declined to elaborate. O'Conner herself wasn't in any database, he said.

"DNA has freed folks, and DNA has convicted folks," Wright said.

'Genealogical witnesses' helped crack cold case of Cumberland baby's murder :: WRAL.com

...
Bode Technology, a Virginia firm that specializes in forensic genealogy services, took DNA from that evidence to develop a family tree for "Baby Michael," which eventually led investigators to charging 54-year-old Deborah Riddle O’Conner with murder.
…
When investigators give them a suspect profile, the experts at Bode can compare it to the family tree, and together they're often able to zero in on the suspect, as they were in the case of "Baby Michael."

Bode is also working with North Carolina law enforcement agencies to test the backlog of sexual assault evidence kits in the state.

And given the last bolded bit of the last article, I bet a whole bunch more perpetrators are just waiting for the knocks on their doors to happen in North Carolina today. This is a very good thing.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

In November, O'Conner posted on Facebook: "You can't hide behind a religious mask forever; sooner or later, the mask will slip and your true face will be known."

"DNA has freed folks, and DNA has convicted folks," Wright said.
21 years after 'Baby Michael' found dead, Cumberland authorities arrest mother :: WRAL.com

 

[lisette]

Can’t find any news on court appearances or trial.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

https://www.doenetwork.org/closed/articles/387UMNC_article.pdf

 

[Corrupted1967]

Burke County woman pleads guilty in infant’s 1999 murder. It's paywalled but says the mom got 12 years

 

[iamshadow21]

Burke County woman pleads guilty in infant’s 1999 murder. It's paywalled but says the mom got 12 years

She pled guilty to second degree, expressed remorse. Gave no explanation for the COD, but as she was pleading guilty, I don't think she was required to. Her attorney claimed the trauma may have been caused by some other car hitting the baby after she left him beside the road. Hmm. Whatever. You leave a newborn by the side of a road in March, you're leaving him to die, whether you bludgeon him first or not. I think the sentence is fair.

Sleep well, Michael.

 

[coco]

She pled guilty to second degree, expressed remorse. Gave no explanation for the COD, but as she was pleading guilty, I don't think she was required to. Her attorney claimed the trauma may have been caused by some other car hitting the baby after she left him beside the road. Hmm. Whatever. You leave a newborn by the side of a road in March, you're leaving him to die, whether you bludgeon him first or not. I think the sentence is fair.

Sleep well, Michael.

12 years for the beating and death of a newborn baby? Not good enough!!

 

[iamshadow21]

12 years for the beating and death of a newborn baby? Not good enough!!

I agree, it should have been more, but so often in these cases we see nothing, so I'm happy it was a custodial sentence. I have hopes she'll serve at least half of it before she's eligible for parole.