Mother arrested in slaying of baby found near freeway
A mother who had claimed that an attacker knocked her out and abducted her 18-month-old daughter was arrested for allegedly killing the child.
Los Angeles County sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said Stacey Barker, 24, was arrested Thursday afternoon at her parents' home in Lancaster and is being held in lieu of $1-million bail. A day after her daughter’s March 18 disappearance, Barker recanted the tale of assault and abduction that launched a massive hunt. She then helped sheriff’s detectives find Emma Leigh’s body and told them the girl died in an accident.
Barker had initially told detectives that she was at a Lancaster park last month near the 14 Freeway and had just placed Emma in her car seat when she was "struck from behind by an unknown assailant."
Barker insisted that she awoke about 10:30 p.m., five hours later and several miles away at a Palmdale park-and-ride on Avenue S, and that her daughter was missing. After Barker recanted, detectives discovered the toddlerby the side of a road in Sylmar, near the 5 Freeway.
The body, found near Roxford Street and El Dorado Avenue, was concealed by deep overgrown brush alongside a fence. Authorities said it appeared that the body, which showed no visible signs of trauma, had been dumped within the previous 24 hours. Coroner’s officials in recent weeks conducted an autopsy and other tests to determine the cause of death.
--Richard Winton
All I can say right now is FINALLY!
Posted by: Cat.WS | April 23, 2009 at 08:44 PM
Man this woman is crazy!!! Why do people have kids when they know they dont want them!!!
Posted by: Sandra I | April 28, 2009 at 11:46 AM
put her in casey anthony's cell. they can come up with more fairy tales about how they are innocent and are being bullied. maybe whacko jose gonzales will defend her for free too since she is young and pretty he may get the same deal he got with c.a. this is disgusting. im sick of hearing about mothers killing and molesting children. what is wrong america? this is not normal. we need more punishment on this so called "mothers" its sickening!
Posted by: babs | April 29, 2009 at 05:15 PM