The shocking story of a baby cut from the womb of a Colorado woman started after the pregnant mother saw a Craigslist ad supposedly selling used baby clothing.
After reading the ad for the baby clothing, authorities say that a 26-year-old woman from Longmont, Colorado–identified as “D” publicly–contacted Dynel Lane, 34, a former certified nurses aide.
“D”, who was seven months pregnant at the time, visited Lane (pictured) at her home to inquire about the sale. But instead of a transaction, authorities allege that Lane attacked her.
Prosecutors say that “D” was viciously stabbed by Lane, and when she was down, Lane set upon the prone woman, sliced open her belly, and removed the fetus.
It appears that Lane’s husband, David Ridley, soon discovered his wife covered in blood. According to police, Lane told her husband that she had a spontaneous abortion in the bathroom of the couple’s home.
Mr. Ridley told authorities he found the fetus in a bathtub and noted that it was still gasping for breath when he entered the bathroom. He then rushed his wife and the baby to a local hospital, where the infant soon died. Doctors noted that if properly treated, the baby was viable and could have survived.
Ridley says he never even knew that “D” was lying stabbed and bleeding in his home when he left for the hospital that night.
“D” then called police and told a 911 operator that she was stabbed and that she was pregnant.
When police arrived, they found “D” lying on a bed and barely conscious. A bloody three-inch knife was discovered in the room.
After arriving at the emergency room, ER personnel noted that the incision on “D’s” stomach “appeared to be well performed.”
Meanwhile, at the same hospital that “D” was taken to, Lane reportedly refused to allow doctors to treat her for what she claimed was a miscarriage.
Ultimately, police say she admitted to the attack on the pregnant woman.
“Dynel admitted to Detective Stacey Graham that she cut abdomen open to remove [the victim’s] baby,” the police report says.
Prosecutors are now weighing the idea of charging Lane with the murder of the baby, but state law on the matter is far from clear.
“The issue of whether or not murder charges are appropriate involving a case involving the death of a fetus or a late-term pregnancy is always a difficult issue,” Boulder County District Attorney Stanley L. Garnett said.
“Under Colorado law, essentially, there’s no way murder charges can be brought if it’s not established that the fetus lived as a child outside the body of the mother for some period of time. I don’t know the answer yet as to whether that can be established, what our facts are here,” Garnett added.
It is unknown how authorities will determine if the period of time that the child existed outside the womb was long enough for it to qualify as a human being under state law.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com