PhD student accused of killing friend’s baby faces death penalty if convicted

Pittsburgh prosecutors are seeking the death penalty in the case of a woman accused of killing a 6-week-old baby and injuring his twin brother in June, a new court filing shows. Nicole Virzi, 30, a PhD student, was charged with homicide and multiple counts of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children. According to a criminal complaint, Virzi called the police on the night of June 15, claiming that one of the twins had fallen from a bassinet. The baby, named Leon Katz, was rushed to a nearby children’s hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The next evening, Virzi discovered injuries to Leon’s twin brother, including scratches, bruising and swelling. After the second baby was taken to the hospital, doctors found the injuries sustained by both twins were neither natural nor accidental. An examination by the medical examiner’s office revealed that Leon had suffered from a severe skull fracture and multiple brain bleeds, with the cause of death determined to be blunt force trauma to the head, resulting from homicide. Virzi, who had been staying at an Airbnb property in Pittsburgh, told police that Leon was in a bouncer seat when she left the room to get him a bottle. Virzi’s defense attorney, David Shrager, told NBC News that Virzi was close friends with the twin’s parents and maintains her innocence. We will of course be litigating this case aggressively until the truth comes out.” Virzi was pursuing her doctorate at the University of California, San Diego. According to the university’s website, she was studying behavioral medicine in the joint doctoral program in clinical psychology. He called on the General Assembly to abolish the death penalty, saying, “The Commonwealth shouldn’t be in the business of putting people to death.” – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/phd-student-accused-killing-friends-baby-faces-death-penalty-convicted-rcna168180