Girl, 14, kills baby at school

Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 3:25 pm

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/?pageId=68062

Teen gives birth, suffocates, drowns newborn boy

A 14-year-old girl has been arrested and charged with murder after she allegedly killed her newborn baby in a school bathroom.

Baytown, Texas, police said the eighth-grade student submerged the 7 pound infant in a Cedar Bayou Junior School toilet and jammed toilet paper down his throat so he wouldn't cry, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Police have been investigating the incident since the baby was found April 2.

The baby also suffered blunt trauma to his head and neck, according to a Harris County autopsy.

Gerald Yoakum, the girl's attorney, claims she wasn't aware that the baby was in the toilet because she was bleeding profusely. The teenager who claims not to have known she was pregnant wore loose clothing to hide her growing belly.

"Please remember that this is a 14-year-old child who has experienced a tragic event," he wrote in a statement.

Yoakum said he plans to work with authorities to ensure "only the facts, not opinons and speculations, will control this case."

Her attorney said the teenager is mourning her baby's death and saw him for the first time at his June funeral. The girl named the 7-pound, 16-inch baby "Johnny."

Prior to the baby's delivery, she visited the nurse's office and complained of painful menstrual cramps. The nurse gave her a heating pad and told her to lie down for a few hours before she returned to class. The teenager then went to the bathroom where she delivered the baby.

When medical help arrived, they took the student to the hospital, and the newborn was pronounced dead. Medical examiners said the death was not accidental and ruled it a homicide, the Chronicle reports.

Authorities say "Johnny" cried at least one time before the 14-year-old girl attempted to flush him down the toilet.