OSSIPEE, N.H. â A New Hampshire man appeared in court Monday on charges that he killed a pregnant woman and her unborn child by means of multiple blunt force injuries, the first time the state has charged someone with murder in the death of a fetus.
William Kelly, 28, appeared in Carroll County Superior Court in Ossipee with his lawyer, Caroline Smith. He did not address the judge. Smith said she planned to file paperwork that Kelly was waiving his arraignment and pleading not guilty. An email seeking comment was left for Smith.
Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Mitchell Weinberg determined that Christine Falzone, 33, was about 35 to 37 weeks pregnant at the time of her death in December.
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The Legislature passed a bill in 2017 that defines a fetus at 20 weeks of development and beyond as a person for purposes of criminal prosecution of murder. Republican Gov. Chris Sununu signed the bill into law. It took effect in 2018.
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Kellyâs case is the first time the state had charged someone with murder in the death of a fetus, said Michael Garrity, a spokesperson for the attorney generalâs office.
Kelly was indicted by a Carroll County grand jury on Friday on two counts of second-degree murder. He recklessly caused the deaths of Falzone and her fetus, according to the indictment.
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Lawyers said they were waiting on forensic test results. They agreed to schedule a hearing in June and a potential trial date in 2025.
Kelly, who was being held without bail, has several criminal convictions. The most recent was for assault in 2019, police said.
Kelly initially was arrested in December on a single second-degree murder charge connected to Falzoneâs death.
Police said they found Falzone unconscious and not breathing at the Ossipee home she shared with Kelly. It was not immediately known if Kelly was the father of the unborn child.
Duane Ford has managed budgets for the Bow and Dunbarton school districts for more than a decade, but nothing quite prepared him for this year’s health insurance bill: a 16% jump in premiums, the steepest increase he’s ever seen. “It’s a part of the budget that we don’t have any control over,” he said. The […]
The federal government has activated the New Hampshire National Guard’s 157th Air Refueling Wing in connection with the war with Iran.
“I’ve had a briefing myself, a classified briefing, but it’s really important on the messaging on this that we really coordinate with the Pentagon,” Gov. Kelly Ayotte told reporters during a press briefing following Wednesday’s Executive Council meeting.
Ayotte said she was unable to share additional details about the nature of the New Hampshire National Guard’s activity related to the conflict, including how many guard members have been activated or what role they are playing.
“We’re going to respect what messaging comes out of the Pentagon just to make sure that our men and women in uniform are fully protected and that we aren’t providing any information that could be used in a way that would be harmful to them,” Ayotte said.
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In a statement Thursday, Ayotte said the unit had been deployed in late February to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in support of the operation.
Pease Air National Guard KC-46 Pegasus air refueling aircraft in June 2023.
Earlier this week, Pentagon officials confirmed that members of the Vermont National Guard were involved in attacks against Iran over the weekend, though our news partners at Vermont Public were not able to confirm additional details on the nature of the operation.
During the briefing with local reporters, Ayotte also stressed her support for servicemembers and those close to them.
“I have such respect for our men and women in uniform,” Ayotte said. “As you know, I come from a military family, and they have our full support, and we appreciate them and their families, and obviously anyone who is serving right now, and my thoughts and prayers go out to those who have lost someone that they love.”
