Top US court rejects baby death conviction
The high court refused to review an appeal by Regina McKnight who challenged the constitutionality of the South Carolina law and argued her sentence amounted to unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.
McKnight, a cocaine addict, gave birth in 1999 to a stillborn, five-pound baby girl. Her pregnancy was estimated to have lasted between 34 and 37 weeks. McKnight’s urine sample tested positive for cocaine, and an autopsy of the baby revealed cocaine metabolites.
