Emily Usnick Missouri Cases

Emily Usnick was convicted of first-degree involuntary manslaughter for the death of her newborn daughter, Baby Usnick, following an unattended home birth. The State alleged Usnick recklessly caused the death by giving birth unattended, failing to secure medical attention, and enclosing the child in a plastic bag. The appellate court reversed the conviction, holding that an unattended birth cannot, as a matter of law, support criminal prosecution. The court further found insufficient evidence to establish corpus delicti for the other alleged causes of death, as the State's experts could not determine a criminal cause of death, and an uncharged drowning theory could not be submitted to the jury.