Plus special access to select articles and other premium content with your account – free of charge.
By entering your email and pushing continue, you are agreeing to Fox News’ Terms of Use and Privacy Policy, which includes our Notice of Financial Incentive.
Please enter a valid email address.
Two parents put their twin babies’ lives in the hands of a “trusted family friend,” who allegedly killed one of the boys and abused the other, according to prosecutors.
Nicole Virzi, a fifth-year Ph.D. student specializing in research about depression’s effect on human behavior, babysat 6-week-old twin boys, Leon and Ari Katz, on June 16.
Advertisement
That’s the day Leon died. Virzi said he fell from his bouncer chair after she woke up from a nap and walked away to get a bottle.
But doctors who examined the baby’s injuries found a skull fracture on the left side of his head and several brain bleeds “consistent with having been sustained as a result of child abuse,” WTAE reported.
7M AND THE DANCING CULT: EXPERT SAYS TRUE-CRIME DOCUSERIES EXAMPLE OF LARGER THREAT
Nicole Virzi, 29, was charged with homicide, three counts of aggravated assault and two counts of child endangerment. She pleaded not guilty.(Allegheny County Jail)
Virzi, 29, was arrested by police near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she was babysitting the kids, and charged with homicide, three counts of aggravated assault and two counts of child endangerment.
Advertisement
There were allegedly signs of abuse on the other baby, too, according to prosecutors.
MURDERER EXPLAINS IN PRISON VIDEO THAT HER ‘WARPED LOGIC’ PREVENTED HER FROM ADMITTING SHE KILLED HER HUSBAND
She pleaded not guilty, and maintains her innocence, her lawyer, David Shrager, said.
“There are extremely disturbing allegations,” Shrager told Fox News Digital, “and she denies any intentional behavior.”
Ethan and Savannah Katz hold their twin boys before one was allegedly killed by the family’s friend.(GoFundMe)
Advertisement
Virzi is the daughter of a respected Manhattan cardiologist and was a few steps from the finish line to getting her Ph.D., according to Shrager.
She has no criminal history, is backed by “a loving and supportive family,” and is a “close family friend of the deceased child’s parents and has a long relationship with them,” he said.
SERIAL KILLER’S 18-ACRE PROPERTY STILL HIDES SECRETS
Just three days before the alleged homicide, Virzi discussed her new research paper in a video on Heart and Mind Journal Office’s X page, which has since been taken down.
Heart and Mind Journal Office couldn’t be reached for comment.
Advertisement
The doctors’ medical exam on baby Leon details disturbing wounds.
Screen grab of Nicole Virzi’s bio as a Ph.D. student at San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology’s website.(San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology)
“The injuries sustained by both (twins are) consistent with having been sustained as a result of child abuse, as these are inflicted injuries that are not natural and not accidental,” a doctor told detectives, according to a report by WTAE, based on the criminal complaint.
The baby’s death was ruled a homicide. Virzi is currently being held in the Allegheny County Jail in Pennsylvania.
SERIAL KILLER MADE A CONCERNING PURCHASE BEFORE HUNTING, BURYING 10,000 HUMAN REMAINS AROUND HIS HOME
Advertisement
“Leon Katz, a beautiful and healthy six-week old baby boy, was tragically killed under horrific circumstances,” according to a GoFundMe set up on behalf of his parents, Savannah and Ethan Katz.
“Leon will always be remembered as a happy, smiley, goofy baby boy. His untimely and tragic death has deeply impacted the Pittsburgh community, occurring on Ethan’s first Father’s Day.”
GO HERE FOR MORE TRUE CRIME FROM FOX NEWS DIGITAL
Screen grab of Nicole Virzi’s bio as a Ph.D. student. (San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology)
Virzi wrote in her bio on the San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology’s website that her research “aims to explore the complex interplay between psychological factors – such as depression, stress, negative affect, and trauma – and critical health outcomes and behaviors – such as metabolic syndrome, heart disease, obesity, eating behavior, and exercise.”
Advertisement
“I am particularly interested in exploring these relationships within female and trauma-exposed populations,” Virzi wrote in her bio.
“By concentrating on these relationships, my research aims to shed light on the unique challenges and opportunities for intervention within these vulnerable groups.”
Press Herald sports writers nominate high school athletes from the prior week’s games.
Readers vote for their top choice and the winner will be announced in the newspapers the following Sunday all season long!
Advertisement
You are able to gift 5 more articles this month.
Anyone can access the link you share with no account required. Learn more.
Article link sent!
An error has occurred. Please try again.
Advertisement
With a The Portland Press Herald subscription, you can gift 5 articles each month.
It looks like you do not have any active subscriptions. To get one, go to the subscriptions page.
Advertisement
With a The Portland Press Herald subscription, you can gift 5 articles each month.
BOSTON (WHDH) – State public health officials have announced two confirmed cases of measles in Massachusetts this year.
The first case came from a school-aged resident who was exposed and diagnoses while out of state. This person has remained out of state during the infectious period.
The second case was diagnosed by an adult in Greater Boston. Officials say this person had recently returned from international travel with an uncertain vaccination history.
This person visited several locations. Both local and state health officials are working with the locations to identify and notify those who were potentially exposed.
Advertisement
“Our first two measles cases in 2026 demonstrate the impact that the measles outbreaks, nationally and internationally, can have here at home. Fortunately, thanks to high vaccination rates, the risk to most Massachusetts residents remains low,” said Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD. “Measles is the most contagious respiratory virus and can cause life-threatening illness. These cases are a reminder of the need for health care providers and local health departments to remain vigilant for cases so that appropriate public health measures can be rapidly employed to prevent spread in the state. This is also a reminder that getting vaccinated is the best way for people to protect themselves from this disease.”
(Copyright (c) 2025 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Join our Newsletter for the latest news right to your inbox
CONCORD, N.H. – New Hampshire lawmakers have moved to reject a Republican-backed proposal to launch an impeachment inquiry into the lone Democrat on the state’s five-member Executive Council.
On Friday, a key committee of lawmakers delivered a unanimous 17-0 vote against an impeachment inquiry into Executive Councilor Karen Liot Hill of Lebanon, N.H.
The vote on House Resolution 41 followed an abbreviated public hearing, after the bill’s sponsor withdrew his support for the proposal and instead asked lawmakers on the committee to recommend killing it.
The push for Liot Hill’s impeachment was led by Representative Joe Sweeney, a Salem Republican and the deputy majority leader in the New Hampshire House.
Advertisement
At issue were several emails Liot Hill had sent from her official account to help a partisan law firm identify voters impacted by a new state law. The law tightened voter ID requirements for absentee ballots.
Get N.H. Morning Report
A weekday newsletter delivering the N.H. news you need to know right to your inbox.
Sweeney had previously called Liot Hill’s correspondence “political lawfare run out of a taxpayer-funded inbox.” In December, a review by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office found that Liot Hill’s conduct was not illegal and did not constitute a misuse of office, clearing the complaint against her.
Reached by the Globe on Friday, Sweeney, who was not present at the public hearing, said in a statement he preferred to let voters decide whether Liot Hill should continue to serve in the upcoming November election.
Advertisement
“After reviewing the matter and hearing the discussion, I believe the appropriate course is to move forward and allow the voters and the political process to do their work,” he said.
“The purpose of filing the resolution was to ensure that the constitutional questions raised were addressed seriously and transparently,” he said, noting that he stands by the process and the decision to recommend killing the resolution.
In an interview, Liot Hill said she was pleased with the unanimous vote from the House Judiciary Committee.
“The committee vote, I think, sends the message that there was no merit to this,” she said.
The proposal now heads to the full House of Representatives, which has the power to approve the committee’s recommendation to reject it.
Advertisement
Amanda Gokee can be reached at amanda.gokee@globe.com. Follow her @amanda_gokee.
