Baby cut from womb healthy as kidnapper in court

A FOUR-DAY-OLD girl who was cut from her strangled mother’s womb was in “remarkably good” condition yesterday, a hospital spokeswoman said, and the alleged attacker faced an initial court appearance.

Lisa Montgomery, of Melvern, Kansas, was set to appear yesterday afternoon at the federal courthouse in Kansas City, Missouri, before Chief Magistrate Judge John Maughmer. A spokesman for US Attorney Todd Graves said the magistrate would read the charge kidnapping resulting in death and possibly appoint a lawyer for Montgomery and schedule an arraignment.

The possibility of a separate federal proceeding in Kansas City put in question the precise timing of Montgomery's court appearance in Missouri, Mr Graves's office said later. The Kansas proceeding, an identity hearing, would take place first but had not been scheduled by late morning. Montgomery had the right to waive the proceeding.

Authorities said Montgomery, aged 36, confessed to strangling Bobbie Jo Stinnett of Skidmore, Missouri, on Thursday, cutting out the foetus and taking the baby back to Kansas.

She is accused of trying to pass the child off as her own to family and friends. Victoria Jo Stinnett, the baby girl, was later recovered unharmed.

The child remained in the neonatal intensive care unit yesterday at Stormont-Vail Regional Health Centre in Topeka, Kansas.

"She's in remarkably good condition for what has happened to her," said hospital spokeswoman Tami Motley. There was no immediate indication when the infant might go home.

The court appearance came one day after churchgoers in two communities struggled to understand the death.

In the small northwestern Missouri town of Skidmore, the minister who presided over Ms Stinnett's wedding last year is offering his services at her funeral on Tuesday.

"They were kids in the neighborhood, nice young kids," said Harold Hamon of Skidmore Christian Church. "She's just a real nice girl, real pretty, quiet and reserved."

Though Rev Hamon didn't discuss the death directly in the sermon, it was very clearly on the mind of the congregation, he said. A member of the congregation who spoke at the couple's wedding performed the communion meditation Sunday, and his subject was forgiveness.

"He kind of broke up trying to talk about it," Rev Hamon said of the speaker, a tough cowboy-rancher type with a big heart.