BREAKING: UIUC student charged with murder of newborn baby
We reported on the story last month when a baby boy was born and died in Bousfield Hall
After a month of investigation, a student at The University of Illinois has been charged with first degree murder of her son, Robert Richard Johnson.
On March 13th, it was reported that Lindsay Johnson, a sophomore in Agricultural Communications, gave birth to her son Robert Richard Johnson, at 1:30 p.m. Police arrived to the scene, however the mother told them she was ill and did not require assistance. A baby, Robert Richard Johnson, was later discovered dead in the student’s backpack.
Johnson originally claimed she did not know she was pregnant until she went into labor that day, but police discovered searches on her phone regarding pregnancy, miscarriage and how to carry out home abortions, along with how to manage physical signs of pregnancy after the loss of a baby.
An investigating determined the 20-year-old’s child was born alive, but found no physical evidence in the autopsy that would indicate how he died. Johnson told police she may have tried to quiet the infant after he was born by putting a towel or her hand over, and admitted she had hidden the baby’s body under her bed when police came to investigate.
Though not yet convicted, Johnson’s sentence would give her 20 to 60 years in prison. The sentence would be split in two: 10 to 20 years for Child Endangerment and two to five years for Concealment Charges. A bail of $750,000 was set after a warrant for her arrest on Monday, April 11th.
Patrick Wade, spokesperson for The University of Illinois Police Department, said they have been working with the state’s attorney office throughout the entire case, and that they have an idea of it’s direction.
Police were sent to the dorms after students reported hearing an infant crying, but Johnson originally told them she had a stomach flu and didn’t need help. However after receiving further information police returned at around 7.30pm and it was discovered that the baby had been born earlier in the day in the hall’s restroom.
Here is our previous story on the case for more details.