From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lisa Marie Montgomery, (born February 27, 1968)
is a woman from Melvern, Kansas who confessed to the 2004 murder of Bobbie Jo
Stinnett, an expectant mother, in an attempt to kidnap her
unborn baby.[1]
Montgomery met Stinnett online in a rat terrier chatroom
called "Ratter Chatter."[2] Posing
as "Darlene Fischer," Montgomery told Stinnett that she, too, was
pregnant. The two women chatted online and exchanged e-mails about
their pregnancies.[3]
Montgomery then arranged a meeting at Stinnett's home under the
pretext of wanting to buy a rat terrier. On
December 17, 2004, Montgomery strangled the pregnant woman in her
home and cut the premature infant from her womb. She later
attempted to pass the infant girl off as her own child. [4] After
Montgomery's capture by police, the days-old baby, named Victoria
Jo Stinnett, was recovered and returned to the care of her father,
Zeb Stinnett.[5]
Trial
At a pre-trial hearing, a neuropsychologist
testified that head injuries which she had suffered some years
before could have damaged the part of the brain which controls
aggression.[6] During
her trial in federal court, her defense attorneys asserted that she
suffered from pseudocyesis, a mental condition that
causes a woman to falsely believe she is pregnant and exhibit
outward signs of pregnancy.[7]
Park Dietz, a Forensic psychiatrist and witness for the
prosecution, testified during the trial. Dietz had worked on other
high-profile cases, including those of child killers Andrea Yates and Susan Smith, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer
and "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski. [8]
On October 22, 2007, jurors found Montgomery guilty of murder.
On October 26, the jury recommended that she be sentenced to death
for her crime. [9] The
prosecutor in the case Matt Withworth claims that Lisa Montgomery
planned the murder for a long time before she did it, according to
a report from the BBC. On April 4,
2008, a judge upheld the jury's sentence recommendation for
death.[10]
See also
Sources
References
- ^
"Kansas Town Stunned By
Kidnap-Murder Case". local6.com. 2004-12-19. http://www.local6.com/news/4005020/detail.html. Retrieved
2007-10-24.
- ^
"Law Center: Couple allegedly
showed off kidnapped baby; Dad united with daughter". [CNN].
December 20, 2004. http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/12/19/missouri.fetus/index.html. Retrieved April 27, 2009.
"[Montgomery], using a fictitious name, contacted Stinnett on
Wednesday through an Internet chat room about looking at rat
terriers the Stinnetts sold over the Internet. [...] The Internet
chat room "Ratter Chatter," a haven for rat terrier lovers in
cyberspace, was overwhelmed with responses from its users, many of
whom indicated they knew both the victim and suspect in the
case."
- ^
True Stories of Law & Order: SVU (page 155) by Kevin
Dwyer and Juré Fiorillo. (Berkley, 2006. ISBN 0425217353)
- ^
"Bobbi Jo Stinnett Murdered for her Baby by Lisa
Montgomery". http://www.karisable.com/stinnett.htm. Retrieved
2007-10-24.
- ^
"Dad united with kidnapped
girl". cnn.com. 2004-12-19. http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/12/18/missouri.fetus/index.html. Retrieved
2007-10-24.
- ^
Summers, Chris (2007-10-01). "The women who kill for
babies". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6990419.stm. Retrieved
2007-10-26.
- ^
"Jury considers death for convicted fetus
thief". MSNBC. 2007-10-24. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21458179/. Retrieved
2007-10-24.
- ^
Park Dietz Associates - In The
News
- ^
"Jury: Lisa Montgomery should
be executed". kansascity.com. 2007-10-26. http://www.kansascity.com/news/breaking_news/story/334555.html. Retrieved
2007-10-26.
- ^
Bill Mears. Woman gets death sentence in
fetus-snatching murder. CNN,
2008-04-04.
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