RYAN BAURLEY - 5 Months (1992) Accused: Babysitter-Melissa Haskell - Bridgeport PA

A Montgomery County baby sitter
last year admitted to detectives that she made mistakes on that day
almost 20 years ago when the child in her care died but that killing the
child was not one of those mistakes.


Melissa A, Haskell, who been
using heroin since she was 14 years old, was 19 when she was employed in
May 1992 to care for Ryan Baurley after his mother returned to work
following maternity leave, officials said. Haskell told detectives she
had an “overly extreme” heroin habit at that time.




The sitter said she was using an average of 10 bags
of heroin a day, injecting the drug every two to three hours, according
to the statement.


On the day of Ryan’s death, Haskell said in her
statement she went to work even though she was “violently ill” and going
through heroin withdrawal after not using the drug since the prior
evening.


After arriving at the Baurley home in Upper Merion
early that morning, she placed a “very active” 5-month-old Ryan in his
crib and then spent the next several hours in the bathroom with
withdrawal symptoms that included vomiting and diarrhea.


When she went to check on Ryan, she found him
unresponsive and immediately called his father while also administering
cardiopulmonary resuscitation, Haskell said in the statement.


The county coroner at the time ruled that Ryan had died of natural causes from sudden infant death syndrome.


Haskell denied killing Ryan when detectives, during the statement, asked her point-blank whether she had suffocated Ryan.


But she admitted that, at one time, she felt responsible for Ryan’s death.


Haskell told detectives she should never have worked that day and should have told someone she was a heroin addict.


“I feel I made some wrong decisions but I have spoken
to God and no longer feel guilty,” Haskell told detectives during the
statement.


Haskell also admitted in the statement that, some six
or seven years after the child’s death, she told Michael Leflar that
she had suffocated Ryan by placing her hand over his mouth because the
child was cranky that day and would not stop crying.


At the time, she and Leflar had an on-again,
off-again relationship but that she was in love with him, calling him
her “soul mate,” according to the statement.


She said she lied about killing Ryan because she had
hoped to win Leflar’s sympathy and love by portraying herself as a
tragic figure.


“He hugged me, kissed me, consoled me,” Haskell told detectives. “It worked.”


That statement was read into testimony Friday during Haskell’s jury trial.


Haskell, 38, of the 700 block of Pershing Road, is charged with third-degree murder for Ryan’s death.


Detectives last spring began re-investigating the
child’s death when Leflar, who married and divorced Haskell but not
before the couple had a son together, went to authorities on April 5 in
the midst of a bitter custody battle over their 7-year-old son to tell
them Haskell had told him she killed Ryan.


Leflar, wearing as body wire and meeting Haskell
under the guise of making custody arrangements, prompted her to again
admit she killed Ryan. Twice during that taped meeting, Haskell told
Leflar, “I will never, ever, ever put my hand over (our son’s) mouth so
he cannot breathe like I did to that baby.”


Haskell later would explain that she made those
statements because she feared Leflar and did not want to tell him that
her earlier admission was a lie.


While admitting that he had never loved Haskell,
Leflar on Friday testified he would never have come forward with
information implicating Haskell in Ryan’s death if Haskell had not
sought custody of their 7-year-old son.


“I was not trying to put her in jail,” Leflar
testified during a tense 2½-hour grilling under cross-examination by
defense attorney Martin P. Mullaney. “I was just trying to keep (Haskell
and their son) apart because I wanted to protect my son from what had
happened to that baby.”


“She was not entitled to custody, not a mother who
had abandoned her child,” said Leflar, who said he essentially had had
full custody of their son since his birth.


Despite their longtime relationship, Leflar said he
agreed to marry Haskell after she became pregnant from a “one-night
stand” when Haskell “came swinging by” and “I was drinking.”


“We got married as partners, not lovers,” Leflar testified.


Asked by Mullaney why he never told the judge at his
custody hearing on April 6, 2011, about Haskell’s admission, Leflar said
he was told by his lawyer “to keep my mouth shut” because of the
renewed investigation into the case. At the conclusion of the custody
hearing, the judge awarded Haskell joint custody.


During the cross-examination, Mullaney repeatedly
attacked Leflar’s credibility, citing various lies by Leflar including
one in which he told detectives he was a high school graduate instead of
truthfully telling them he dropped out after the ninth grade.


“I was embarrassed,” Leflar explained.


In other testimony Friday, Patricia Dunn, Ryan's aunt, testified to having contact with Haskell on the day of the child’s death.


That contact came back at the Baurley home where friends and family were gathering shortly after the child died.


“She came up to me,” testified Dunn. “In a very
matter-of-fact fashion, very businesslike, she said (Michael Baurley,
Ryan’s father and her brother) owed her a week’s pay and that she wanted
it.”


“I was afraid she would go to Michael, on a day when
he was making funeral arrangements for his child who had just died, so I
just paid her $200 or $250 in cash, I can’t remember how much,” Dunn
testified.


The prosecution is expected to wrap up its case against Haskell on Monday.
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/crime/sitter-admits-she-was-heroin-addict-at-time-of-child/article_94191810-5c4a-5c6e-ab75-ef79e2cfe616.html

Baby sitter 'hysterical' after infant's death

Posted: Tuesday, June 12, 2012 5:00 am
Updated: 7:09 am, Tue Jun 12, 2012
By Margaret Gibbons Staff writer

Two defense witnesses Monday testified that the baby sitter, accused last year of killing an infant in her care some 19 years earlier, was “hysterical” on the day of the baby’s death.

“Melissa (Haskell) called me that morning,” said Debra Haskell, the defendant’s mother. “She was hysterical. I couldn’t understand what she was saying at first. She said she had found him and he wasn’t breathing.”

Haskell, who was 19 at the time, called her from the hospital shortly after 5-month-old Ryan Baurley was pronounced dead on the morning of Aug. 26, 1992, according to Haskell’s mother.

When Haskell was dropped off at home later that day, she was still hysterical, her mother said.

“She was crying, I was crying while I held her,” the mother testified. “She was a mess, just falling apart.”

Debbie Bickings, a longtime friend of Haskell’s, testified that Haskell came into the bank where she was employed as a teller that same day.

Earlier in the day, one of her customers told her that he saw paramedics working on a young child in the same Upper Merion neighborhood where Haskell baby-sat but that she had thought the child likely was the child of another customer.

“As soon as I looked at her (Haskell), I knew it was the baby she cared for,” Bickings testified. “She was totally distraught, crying, saying the child had stopped breathing. The look on her face was as if she had lost a family member.”

Bickings said she tried to console her friend, even coming from around the counter and giving Haskell a hug, but that she soon had to return to work.

The testimony was in marked contrast to prosecution witnesses’ testimony that Haskell showed no emotion or stared blankly on the day of the child’s death and, just hours after the child’s death, went to his aunt and asked to be paid for the week.

Haskell, 38, of the 700 block of Pershing Road, is on trial on a third-degree murder charge for Ryan’s death.

Ryan’s death at time was attributed to natural causes resulting from sudden infant death syndrome.

Authorities last spring began re-investigating the case when Michael Leflar, Haskell’s ex-husband and in a bitter battle with Haskell over the custody of the couple’s 7-year-old son, came forward to tell them that some 10 years earlier Haskell had told him that she had killed the Baurley baby.

Haskell told him that she was “violently ill” while undergoing heroin withdrawal the day of Ryan’s death, Leflar told authorities. Unable to get Ryan to stop crying that morning, Haskell placed her hand over the child’s mouth and nose and suffocated him, Leflar related to authorities.

With Leflar wearing a body wire, detectives several days later recorded a conversation between the pair in which Haskell, prompted by Leflar, said she would never hold her hand over their son’s mouth like she did “to that baby.”

At the same time, Coroner Dr. Walter I. Hofman reviewed the reports concerning Ryan’s death and amended the death certificate to read that Ryan’s death was a homicide resulting from suffocation with alcohol intoxication as a contributing factor.

In a statement she gave to detectives last year, Haskell admitted telling Leflar that she killed Ryan. She told them that the statement was a lie designed to portray herself as a tragic figure to win Leflar’s sympathy and love.

She made the second statement that Leflar was secretly recording, Haskell told authorities, because she was afraid of Leflar and did not want to tell him she had lied to him. Scheduled to get partial custody of their son later on the day of the taped conversation, she did not want anything to interfere with that, Haskell told detectives.

Both Leflar and his sister, Susan Monteleone, earlier had threatened to go to authorities with her statement if either she or her parents had sought custody of the couple’s son, according to their testimony.

Testimony in the jury trial before Judge Garrett D. Page is likely to wrap up Tuesday. Haskell is not expected to testify.

If convicted, Haskell could be sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison.

Haskell has been held in the county prison since her August 2011 arrest, initially on no bail and then later unable to make $500,000 cash bail.

http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/crime/baby-sitter-hysterical-after-infant-s-death/article_852cd88f-9d09-50fb-9a62-2c12f54ebc68.html

I hope this skank is convicted. She is dangerous and will kill again. I'm glad the father got custody of their son so he will be safe.

A Montgomery County baby sitter
murdered the child in her care 20 years ago, according to a county jury
of eight men and four women.


The jury, deliberating some
three hours following seven days of testimony, Wednesday ruled that
Melissa A. Haskell was guilty of third-degree murder for the Aug. 26,
1992, death of 5-month-old Ryan Baurley of Upper Merion.




Haskell, 38, of the 700 block of Pershing Road, Upper Merion, is facing a potential sentence of 10 to 20 years in jail.


“This verdict was very gratifying,” said county
Deputy District Attorney Christopher M. Maloney who, with Assistant
District Attorney Matthew Quigg, prosecuted the case. “These people (the
Baurley family) waited 20 years for justice and to finally have it
delivered, it is almost a surreal experience for them.”


“It’s been a roller coaster ride for them but their faith was repaid today,” said Maloney.


Other than a quick backward jerk of her body and then
bowing her head, Haskell showed little reaction upon hearing the jury’s
verdict. She later wiped away tears and, as deputies handcuffed her and
took her out of the courtroom, she was heard sniffling.


Asked if she had any comment, Haskell said reporters should talk to her lawyers, Frank Genovese and Martin P. Mullaney.


“Obviously we are disappointed but I can’t say we
were unprepared for this possibility,” said Genovese. “My client always
knew she had two big things working against her, an infant victim and
there was a tape where she said she put her hand over his mouth.”


While saying he respected the jurors’ decision,
Genovese said he was a “little surprised” that, after six days of
testimony that included six expert witnesses, the jury came back with
their decision in just three hours.


Members of the Baurley family, who have been in the
courtroom throughout the trial, showed little emotion upon hearing the
verdict.


Lisa and Michael Baurley, Ryan’s parents, closely watched Haskell for her reaction.


Baurley family members declined comment on the verdict.


Anita O’Meara, a lawyer acting as a spokeswoman for
the family, told reporters that they did not want to talk about the case
immediately following the verdict. O’Meara asked that their privacy be
respected.


Maloney credited the verdict to the work of detectives in putting together what essentially was a 20-year-old case.


The coroner at the time ruled that Ryan died of natural causes, attributing his death to sudden infant death syndrome.


The Baurleys had suspicions at that time,
particularly after toxicology reports revealed that their first-born
child had a high level of alcohol in his system. Ryan’s alcohol level
was equal to two drinks by an adult. The family consulted a national
SIDS expert in the area who advised them that he did not think Ryan died
from SIDS. Still, the case did not go anywhere.


It was not until April 2011 that authorities thought the death might be a homicide.


That was when Michael Leflar, Haskell’s ex-husband,
came forward to tell them that, in the late 1990s, Haskell had confided
in him that she was responsible for Ryan’s death.


Leflar told authorities that Haskell told him that
she was extremely ill while going through heroin withdrawal on that day
of Ryan’s death. When Ryan would not stop crying, she placed her hand
over his nose and mouth and suffocated him, Leflar told detectives,
according to trial testimony.


Detectives initially were skeptical of Leflar’s
information because they were aware that Leflar and Haskell were in the
midst of a bitter custody battle over their 7-year-old son, who had
lived with Leflar most of his life.


Three days after Leflar gave his statement to
detectives and just two days after a judge had awarded Haskell joint
custody, Leflar got Haskell to meet with him under the guise of working
out custody arrangements. Wearing a body wire and under the watchful eye
of detectives, Leflar prompted Haskell to swear to him that she would
not hurt her son like she did to the baby that had been in her care.


“I will never ever ever put my hand over (our son’s
mouth) so he cannot breathe like I did to that baby,” Haskell is
recorded as saying several times during the meeting.


Later, when questioned by detectives, Haskell
admitted that she told Leflar, whom she described as her soul mate but
whom she acknowledged did not love her like she loved him, that she had
killed Ryan. Haskell told detectives it was a lie and she had hoped to
win Leflar’s sympathy and love by portraying herself as a tragic figure.


As for the recorded statement, Haskell said she had
grown to fear Leflar and did not want to admit to him that her prior
disclosure was a lie, according to trial testimony. She said she also
wanted the custody arrangements to go smoothly.


At the same time detectives were investigating
Haskell and seeking others who could corroborate Leflar’s statement
concerning Haskell’s revelation to him, Coroner Dr. Walter I. Hofman was
also reviewing Ryan’s death. He subsequently ruled that the child’s
death was a homicide caused by suffocation and acute alcohol
intoxication.


Detectives also had found other witnesses, including
Leflar’s boss and a state trooper as well as his sister and brother, who
said Leflar had told them about Haskell killing the child before Leflar
even married Haskell and had a child with her.


The defense spent most of their time attempting to
discredit Leflar and his motivation in coming forward and attacking
Hofman’s amending of Ryan’s death certificate, claiming Hofman’s ruling
to overturn the original decision on Ryan’s death was not based on any
new scientific evidence and was unduly influenced by Haskell’s
statements to Leflar and her taped statement.


In the end, Genovese said, he believes the jurors “rested their decision pretty much solely on her admission on the tape.”


At the conclusion of testimony on Tuesday, Judge
Garrett D. Page had given Haskell the option of having the jury consider
a lesser offense of involuntary manslaughter along with third-degree
murder. This would have enabled the jury to possibly come up with a
compromise verdict if they could not agree on third-degree murder.
However, Haskell opted to gamble on an all-or-nothing verdict, with the
jurors just considering her guilt or innocence on the third-degree
murder charge.


The judge boosted Haskell’s bail to $1 million cash while she waits for her sentencing hearing.


Haskell has been held in the county prison since her
arrest last August. Initially, she was held on no bail. A judge later
set the bail at $500,000 cash, which she has not been able to post.
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/crime/montco-baby-sitter-guilty-of-murder/article_1fdb3a80-a0a0-579d-b718-1c2d35f7226b.html

I hope she gets the full 20 year sentence and can never be with children again. She is dangerous.

Montco nanny appeals murder conviction

November 11, 2012


The attorney for Melissa Haskell filed a Superior Court appeal Friday of the June murder conviction in the death of an infant in her care 20 years ago.

The appeal had to be filed within 30 days of Haskell's sentencing, said her attorney, Martin P. Mullaney. Haskell, a Bridgeport, Montgomery County, nanny, was sentenced in October to 10 to 20 years in prison for the death of 5-month-old Ryan Baurley, who died while Haskell was caring for him in 1992.

The case was reopened last year when Haskell's ex-husband, who had been fighting with her for custody of their own child, told authorities she had confessed to killing the baby. A later admission Haskell made, which the estranged husband secretly recorded, will be part of the appeal, Mullaney said.

The Montgomery County coroner at the time of the incident ruled that the baby died from SIDS. After the case was reopened, Coroner Walter I. Hofman reviewed the evidence and changed the manner of death to homicide, which helped lead to the murder charge against Haskell.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-11-11/news/35050756_1_murder-conviction-ryan-baurley-melissa-haskell

MasonMomma wrote:Montco nanny appeals murder conviction

November 11, 2012


The attorney for Melissa Haskell filed a Superior Court appeal Friday of the June murder conviction in the death of an infant in her care 20 years ago.

The appeal had to be filed within 30 days of Haskell's sentencing, said her attorney, Martin P. Mullaney. Haskell, a Bridgeport, Montgomery County, nanny, was sentenced in October to 10 to 20 years in prison for the death of 5-month-old Ryan Baurley, who died while Haskell was caring for him in 1992.

The case was reopened last year when Haskell's ex-husband, who had been fighting with her for custody of their own child, told authorities she had confessed to killing the baby. A later admission Haskell made, which the estranged husband secretly recorded, will be part of the appeal, Mullaney said.

The Montgomery County coroner at the time of the incident ruled that the baby died from SIDS. After the case was reopened, Coroner Walter I. Hofman reviewed the evidence and changed the manner of death to homicide, which helped lead to the murder charge against Haskell.

http://articles.philly.com/2012-11-11/news/35050756_1_murder-conviction-ryan-baurley-melissa-haskell

Too bad this poor little baby can't appeal her murder.