MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Alabama has taken the first step toward paying nearly $119,000 to a church pianist who spent nine months in jail facing a capital murder charge that resulted from a botched autopsy on her newborn son.
The Senate's General Fund committee unanimously approved the payment Tuesday for Bridget Lee. The 37-year-old mother of two was arrested after she had a child prematurely at home in November 2006. A forensic pathologist said the child was suffocated, but a later review determined the child was stillborn.
District Attorney Chris McCool said he never would have charged her if not for the incorrect autopsy.
Lee said she is blessed to have the Legislature considering compensation, but no amount of money will get her life back to normal.
