{"id":304020,"date":"2023-12-22T16:39:32","date_gmt":"2023-12-22T22:39:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=304020"},"modified":"2023-12-21T13:49:12","modified_gmt":"2023-12-21T19:49:12","slug":"nh-prosecutors-homicide-charge-murdered-preborn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/nh-prosecutors-homicide-charge-murdered-preborn\/","title":{"rendered":"NH prosecutors debate homicide charge for death of murdered woman’s preborn child"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A New Hampshire woman who was 35 to 37 weeks pregnant was murdered in her home last week, and prosecutors are debating whether or not the man responsible for her death can also be charged for the death of her preborn child.<\/p>\n

William Kelly, 38, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Christine Falzone, 33. Police responded to the home where the couple lived and found Falzone deceased; an autopsy revealed that she had died of blunt-force trauma. The autopsy also revealed that she had been just weeks away from giving birth. According to the Nashua Telegraph<\/a>, Kelly and Falzone were dating.<\/p>\n

In 2017, New Hampshire lawmakers passed<\/a> a “fetal homicide” bill that defines a fetus as a person after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Anyone who causes the death of a fetus after that point \u2014 except through an abortion procedure\u00a0\u2014 could face a homicide or manslaughter charge. Despite this law, prosecutors have not yet decided if Kelly will also face charges in the death of Falzone’s preborn child.<\/p>\n

“So, under New Hampshire law, death of another can include any fetus, which is more than 20 weeks in gestation,” said<\/a> Thomas P. Velardi, Director of Public Protection at the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office. “There could be additional charges as we evaluate whether the death of Miss Falzone is the proximate cause of the death of the fetus.”<\/p>\n