Newborn Twin Deaths: Lindsey Lowe Convicted of First Degree Murder For Neonaticide
A Tennessee jury found 26-year-old Lindsey Lowe guilty Tuesday of first-degree premeditated murder of her newborn twin sons, the Daily Mail reported.
The jurors deliberated for two hours before Lowe was found guilty on two counts each of felony first-degree murder and felony premeditated murder. She was sentenced to two life terms for her crimes.
Police are still trying to identify the father, the Associated Press said, and Lowe never went to a doctor during her pregnancy.
When Judge Dee Gay announced Lowe’s bond was revoked and she was to be placed in immediate custody, the woman turned to her hysterical family members and mouthed, “I'll be all right. I love you all,” and was soon taken out of the courtroom, the Daily Mail reported.
Lowe was reportedly emotional throughout the trial, but remained stone-faced when she was convicted of killing her twin boys, after a pregnancy that she kept secret from family and friends.
Jurors were shown a video where Lowe told authorities she had given birth to the twins alone in a bathroom at her parents' house on Sept. 11, 2011. She smothered them soon after.
One baby's body was found two days later in a laundry basket at her parent’s home in Hendersonville, 20 miles northeast of Nashville. Police discovered the second body under a bloody sheet when they arrived at the house to investigate.
Lowe was engaged when she became pregnant but had an affair with another man, jurors were informed.
According to a picture posted by the Daily Mail, Lowe was a bridesmaid in a wedding where she wore a blue strapless dress just one day before giving birth. Her sister, Lacey, testified that she undressed in front of women in the bridal party and no one suspected she was pregnant. When family members noticed Lowe getting larger, they attributed it to her fluctuating weight.
Hendersonville Police Detective Steve Malach testified she hid her pregnancy as to not upset her fiancé and add to the burden of a family member’s illness.
During the interrogation video, Lowe said “maybe” she smothered the babies when she put her hands over their mouths.
“I was just trying to keep them quiet,” she said on the video.
The detective also testified that after police searched the home it was clear she had not made any plans for the children’s birth.
According to the defense, Lowe blocked the pregnancy out her mind and didn’t know she was giving birth until one of the babies dropped into the toilet.
“Lindsey Lowe was pregnant, but she refused to accept it, her mind refused to accept it,” defense attorney John Pellegrin told the jury.
Psychiatrist Dr. William Kenner testified for the defense that Lowe had blocked out her pregnancy and then due to blood loss from giving birth she suffered from shock and delirium.
But Prosecutor Ray Whitley painted a different picture. He countered the defense by presenting evidence of Internet searches on Lowe’s iPhone where she searched for information on how to induce labor and she also reportedly looked for pornography involving pregnant women.
Women with unwanted pregnancies have several options, including a safe haven law that allows for newborns to be dropped off at police stations and hospitals.
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