July 07, 2019 at 08:17AM
A former Ohio high school cheerleader accused of killing her newborn baby is asking for three separate trials to face her five charges.
Brooke Skylar Richardson, now 20, was 18 when she allegedly told a doctor that she gave birth to a stillborn baby, who she named "Annabelle." Prosecutors claim she admitted to the physician that she burned her corpse and buried it in her parents' backyard in the village of Carlisle, just north of Cincinnati.
Richardson gave birth at home just days after her senior prom in 2017 and weeks before she was set to begin college. Her parents and friends have said she hid the pregnancy from them.
Prosecutors allege Richardson "purposely" caused the baby's death, and have said the family was "obsessed" with external appearances.
She was charged with aggravated murder, involuntary manslaughter, gross abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and child endangering.
Richardson's attorneys issued a motion Wednesday asking a judge to order a separate trial to avoid making it harder for her to get a fair trial, Fox 19 reported.
The trial is scheduled to begin on Sept. 3.
A former Ohio high school cheerleader accused of killing her newborn baby is asking for three separate trials to face her five charges.
Brooke Skylar Richardson, now 20, was 18 when she allegedly told a doctor that she gave birth to a stillborn baby, who she named "Annabelle." Prosecutors claim she admitted to the physician that she burned her corpse and buried it in her parents' backyard in the village of Carlisle, just north of Cincinnati.
Richardson gave birth at home just days after her senior prom in 2017 and weeks before she was set to begin college. Her parents and friends have said she hid the pregnancy from them.
Prosecutors allege Richardson "purposely" caused the baby's death, and have said the family was "obsessed" with external appearances.
She was charged with aggravated murder, involuntary manslaughter, gross abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and child endangering.
Richardson's attorneys issued a motion Wednesday asking a judge to order a separate trial to avoid making it harder for her to get a fair trial, Fox 19 reported.
The trial is scheduled to begin on Sept. 3.