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Gosnell Defense Rests Without A Witness as Judge Clarifies Murder Charge Dismissal
Hundreds of charges will go to the jury
April 24, 2013
By Cheryl Sullenger
Philadelphia, PA - In a surprise move, the defense in the Kermit
Gosnell murder trial has rested without calling a single witness. The
news comes on the heals of a clarification by Judge Jeffery P. Minehart
about a mix-up in the dismissal of one of the murder charges yesterday.
Closing arguments are set for Monday.
Yesterday's
dismissal of nine criminal charges against accused murderer Kermit
Gosnell stunned many who have followed this macabre case involving
babies born alive during illegal late-term abortions then intentionally
killed amid squalid conditions at Gosnell's "House of Horrors"
abortion clinic.
Today,
Judge Jeffery P. Minehart clarified that he did not intend to drop the
First Degree Murder charges for Baby C, a baby witnesses said was
breathing for 20 minutes before it was stabbed in the neck by Lynda
Williams in Gosnell's presence.
Instead, murder charges should have been dismissed in the death of Baby F for which there was less compelling evidence.
Nevertheless,
the dismissals are expected to have little effect on the trial's
outcome. Court records show that Gosnell still faces over 380 criminal
counts, including five murder charges. A conviction on any of the
First Degree murder counts would mean he could still receive the death
penalty or life in prison without parole.
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