Holly Ashcroft has apparently had two babies die under mysterious circumstances that have proven difficult to investigate to conclusion.
Ashcraft was arrested in October 2005 after a newborn was found in a Dumpster behind the 29th Street Cafe. DNA evidence proved it was her son.Prosecuting Deputy District Attorney Franco Barrata had cited a coroner's conclusion that the baby was born alive, but defense attorney Mark Geragos had repeatedly challenged that assertion in court. ...
The case had prominently featured expert testimony by deputy medical examiner David B. Whiteman, who said the deceased infant's lungs were partially inflated, indicating a live birth.
But two medical experts from USC's Keck School of Medicine reviewed the final autopsy report and found little evidence of a live birth. ...
According to the Los Angeles Times, Ashcraft was investigated in 2004 for similar charges after she showed up at Good Samaritan Hospital having recently given birth, but without a baby.
She said the baby was stillborn, and police could never find the baby's body to verify her claim, the Times reported.
Smoke -> Fire. Everyone knows that this woman or the father(s) killed at least one of these two babies. After the investigation into the first "stillbirth" Ashcraft knew that she'd be better off not showing up at a hospital without a baby again, but I'll bet both children ended up in dumpsters.
The reactions from her friends and family show that this girl is probably a sociopath.
At Ashcraft's arraignment in November 2005, nearly two-dozen family and friends showed up for support, and 36 letters were submitted to the judge on Ashcraft's behalf."She's one of those memorable kids," said Burton Pierce, Ashcraft's high school guidance counselor. "Probably [ranks in] the top 10 kids of all time that I've ever worked with academically."
What does this say for the Los Angeles justice system? In conjunction with the recent Paris Hilton circus I assume you can draw your own conclusions.
Independent Sources points out that the baby was dumped only a few blocks from a hospital where Ashcraft could have surrendered her baby with no questions asked.
In fact if you look at the Google Map of the area, the distance between the dumpster where Holly Ashcraft’s child was found and nearby Fire Station #15 you will see that Google calculates it as just a forty-two seconds drive. Less than a minute to preserve a life, doesn’t seem like much to us.
The Steel Deal rightly draws attention to a golden nugget near the end of the story that gives us insight into the minds of defense lawyers:
"Everyone [at the firm] couldn't be happier for her," said Wallin, who had also advised Ashcraft during the 2004 investigation."She's a wonderful young lady," he added. "From the very beginning of the case. … We always believed 100 percent that the district attorney would never be able to prove a homicide charge with the evidence in this case."
So you knew she did it, but were confident that it couldn't be proven beyond a reasonable doubt? Awesome.
Whether or not Ashcraft ever gets convicted of anything, she should be cast out of society.
(HT: Where Are My Keys?, Scrapwood.)
