Because Brooke Skylar Richardson didn't tell anyone she was pregnant or had given birth, authorities were unable to determine if her baby had been stillborn as she claimed and she was subsequently found not guilty of murder.
Warning: This article contains graphic descriptions and/or images of violent, disturbing, or otherwise potentially distressing events.
Kim RichardsonBrooke Skylar Richardson was a high school cheerleader who was looking forward to graduation and college when she made a decision that changed the course of her life.
On May 5, 2017, 18-year-old Brooke Skylar Richardson attended her senior prom at her high school in Carlisle, Ohio. Less than 48 hours later, she secretly gave birth to a baby girl in her bathroom at home. Richardson had kept her pregnancy a secret from everyone, including her own family.
When the infant didn’t survive, Richardson buried her in the backyard. Two months later, she told her doctor what had happened, triggering a police investigation that would change her life forever.
Prosecutors didn’t believe Richardson’s story that her daughter had been stillborn. Instead, they theorized that the young cheerleader had suffocated the baby in order to “maintain her perfect life.”
Brooke Skylar Richardson was ultimately found not guilty of killing her child, though she was sentenced to three years of probation for gross abuse of a corpse. However, many people remain convinced that she got away with murder.
Brooke Skylar Richardson’s Life Before Pregnancy
Brooke Skylar Richardson, known to her family and friends as Skylar, grew up in Carlisle, Ohio, a small community of 5,000 people. On the surface, her life seemed perfect. She lived in a beautiful house with her parents and brother and was a cheerleader at her high school.
However, behind the scenes, Richardson struggled with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia that had consumed her daily life since she was 12 years old. She wouldn’t even chew gum because it had five calories.
48 Hours/YouTubeBrooke Skylar Richardson before her pregnancy.
Then, in the summer of 2016, Richardson started going out with the cousin of one of her friends. Their relationship was short-lived, but in January 2017, she began dating a classmate named Brandon.
Around that time, Richardson started gaining weight. Her parents thought it was because she was happy and confident in her new relationship, and they were glad that she seemed to be overcoming her eating disorder.
Her mother, Kim Richardson, even took her to the doctor in April 2017 to get a prescription for birth control, as she knew her daughter’s connection with Brandon was serious. That’s when Brooke Skylar Richardson learned that she was eight months pregnant.
How The High School Cheerleader Secretly Gave Birth
According to the Associated Press, Richardson told Dr. William Andrew upon hearing that she was pregnant, “I can’t have a baby! I’m going to college.” Scared and overwhelmed, the teen decided not to tell her mother the news. Instead, she continued on with her daily life as if nothing had changed, attending school and focusing on her upcoming prom.
However, when she was alone, she searched the internet for things like “how to get rid of a baby.”
On the night of May 5, 2017, Brooke Skylar Richardson put on the tight-fitting red dress she’d purchased a few months earlier. Even though she was less than two days away from giving birth, nobody had any suspicions about her appearance.
Kim RichardsonBrooke Skylar Richardson in her prom dress the day she purchased it (left) and less than 48 hours before giving birth (right).
Then, less than 48 hours later, in the early morning hours of May 7, Richardson secretly birthed a full-term baby in her bathroom. She was sitting on the toilet when the infant came out, and she later claimed that the newborn was lifeless and her umbilical cord was detached. Richardson quietly crept out of the house and buried her daughter, Annabelle, in the backyard that same night.
Within hours, Richardson was taking photos of herself in a mirror at the gym. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, she texted her boyfriend, “Last night was like the worst ever. But I feel so much better this morning. I’m happy.”
She also sent a disturbing message to her mom: “I’m literally speechless with how happy I am. My belly is back omg I am never ever ever… letting it [get] like this again your about to see me look freaking better than before omg.”
Over the next two months, Brooke Skylar Richardson pretended as if she’d never given birth and buried her child. Then, during a doctor’s appointment to refill her birth control prescription in July 2017, the chilling truth came out.
The Arrest And Trial Of Brooke Skylar Richardson
On July 12, Richardson’s doctor asked her about the records in her chart that indicated she’d been pregnant in April. She admitted what had happened, bursting into tears and saying, “I had it alone in my house and I buried it in my backyard.” The medical office alerted the authorities, and soon, the police showed up at Richardson’s house.
The teen initially told investigators that Annabelle had been stillborn. However, when they continued questioning her, that story changed. In 2019, Ohio news station WKEF reported on interrogation tapes in which Richardson seemingly admitted that the baby may have been alive after all.
Warren County Common Pleas CourtBrooke Skylar Richardson sits in an interrogation room as detectives press her for answers about the death of her newborn.
When detectives asked if the infant had many any noises after birth, Richardson responded, “Maybe a little noise, like a gurgle, but I didn’t know if it was something else.” She also said the baby may have moved while she was in the toilet before Richardson picked her up.
Investigators were able to locate the infant’s remains in Richardson’s backyard, and a forensic anthropologist initially reported that there was evidence the bones may have been burned. Richardson denied this at first, but then she admitted, “I tried to cremate the baby just a little.”
The anthropologist later retracted this claim after examining the bones again, saying there actually wasn’t any evidence of burning. However, Brooke Skylar Richardson was charged with aggravated murder, child endangerment, and gross abuse of a corpse.
Court TVBrooke Skylar Richardson faced life in prison if found guilty of murdering her infant.
At trial in 2019, Richardson’s defense team argued that she’d been pressured into confessing and that she simply agreed with what the police said because she had a personality disorder that made her want to please authority figures. In the end, the prosecution didn’t have any evidence that Annabelle was alive at birth, but they still pushed for an involuntary manslaughter conviction.
Attorneys claimed that after finding out she was pregnant, Richardson avoided prenatal care, didn’t go back for an ultrasound or any medical treatment, and ignored calls from her doctor. What’s more, an obstetrician testified that Richardson’s eating disorder could have impacted the baby’s development during pregnancy. Dr. John White explained to the jury that fetal growth restriction increases the risk of having a stillborn baby. In his professional opinion, Annabelle had died before birth.
After just four hours of deliberation, a jury found Brooke Skylar Richardson not guilty of murder, though she was convicted of gross abuse of a corpse and sentenced to three years of probation.
Richardson walked away without prison time, but she continued to struggle with everything that had happened.
The Aftermath Of The Haunting Murder Trial
In a 2019 interview with Cosmopolitan, Brooke Skylar Richardson came forward with her side of the story. “It was so hard to live knowing the truth, but to have the whole world think otherwise,” she said of her case. “The people out there who hate me so much and wish horrible things upon me also do not know me.”
The trial had taken a huge toll on Richardson. She reportedly lost her hair from the stress, and her weight dropped to just 89 pounds. “Inside, I felt like I was dying,” she told Cosmo. “Very few things have been harder than having to listen to prosecutors allege horrible, unthinkable things of me and put countless photos of my daughter’s bones on a big screen.”
48 Hours/YouTubeBrooke Skylar Richardson was ultimately found not guilty of murdering her newborn daughter, but she also faced the court of public opinion.
In the aftermath, Richardson also faced death threats, taunts calling her a “baby killer,” and internet memes mocking her. Although she’d been found not guilty in a court of law, the general public deemed her a villain.
Still, Richardson tried to move on with her life. She went to college and worked at the law firm that had represented her at trial. Her actions continued to haunt her, however, and she admitted that her biggest regret was hiding her pregnancy. “I wish I would have done it differently,” she told Cosmo. “I’m plagued by guilt every day for not telling someone.”
After reading about Brooke Skylar Richardson, learn about Michelle Carter the teen who convinced her boyfriend to take his own life. Then, go inside the story of Skylar Neese, the girl who was murdered by her best friends.
