McCONNELLSBURG, Pa. (TCN) — A 19-year-old man and 20-year-old woman are facing murder charges after she reportedly gave birth in her apartment, then threw the child out of the window onto the street.
Pennsylvania State Police announced June 25 that Joshua Coleman and Emily Dickinson are being charged with criminal homicide and other related charges in connection with the death of a newborn in March. Court records show the additional charges include conspiracy to commit homicide, concealing the death of a child, and abuse of a corpse. Wooters is also facing one count of obstructing the administration of law.
According to Pennsylvania State Police, on March 11 at 8:45 a.m., troopers were called to Lincoln Way East and found an unresponsive infant on the ground. First responders rendered immediate aid, but the Fulton County Coroner’s Office declared the child deceased at the scene.
WHTM-TV reports the coroner determined the victim was born full-term and within 24 hours of death. The cause of death was listed as “exsanguination from the umbilical stump.” Investigators reportedly located a placenta, bloody mattress, and other evidence on the sidewalk near the child’s body.
Wooters allegedly told investigators he didn’t know anything about the child when they interviewed him, but in a follow-up conversation, he said his “first reaction of something that’s traumatic for me is, um, to lie.”
Court records cited by WHP-TV say troopers found blood throughout Wooters and Dickinson’s apartment. The windows in their unit overlooked the area where the newborn was dropped.
Dickinson allegedly informed Wooters that she was going into labor. She reportedly cut the newborn’s umbilical cord using a kitchen knife, then threw the baby out of the window while he was in another room. He reportedly asked her, “What the f–k did you do?”
The child was reportedly born alive, but Wooters said he thought the infant had died due to blood loss prior to Dickson’s purported actions.
WHTM reports Dickinson told investigators she believed the child wasn’t breathing, but then she started hallucinating. She allegedly said she tossed the child because she “wasn’t thinking clearly,” and went to sleep.
Wooters claimed Dickinson picked the newborn up like “dog poop.”
According to WHP, Dickinson found out about her pregnancy when she was somewhere between 20 and 30 weeks along, and she never went to an OB/GYN. She allegedly researched abortions and adoption options.
The same day she gave birth, Dickinson reportedly looked up “home birth,” “home birth how long does the bleeding last,” and “home birth complications from premature birth” online.
Dickinson reportedly worked as a certified nurse assistant in Maryland and was looking to move her certification to Pennsylvania.
Court records show both Dickinson and Wooters are being held without bail.