Ohio kidnapper Ariel Castro faces additional charges for killing babies, causing abortions
Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro not only subjected women to sexual slavery in his home for years, but he assaulted them to the point of causing abortions of their unborn children when they became pregnant.
Castro starved and kicked one of the kidnapped pregnant women, Michelle Knight, resulting in her miscarrying five children.
Ariel Castro
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Timothy J. McGinty said his office intended to seek charges not only for the sexual assaults endured by the victims, but also “each act of aggravated murder he committed by terminating pregnancies.”
Now a Cuyahoga County grand jury returned a 329-count indictment against Ariel Castro charging him with kidnapping and rape of three women. Two counts of the indictment are for aggravated murder in the deaths of two unborn babies.
“Our coalition is pleased that the prosecutor kept his word by following our urging to charge Castro with murder. The grand juries’ decision to charge Castro with murdering two of the unborn children that Michelle Knight was carrying will hopefully bring them justice,” said Mark Harrington of Created Equal.
“These babies deserve the same protection that all pregnant mothers have. Despite the fact that the Michelle Knight was not also killed in this instance is beside the point. We expect Castro to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for murdering these unborn babies.”
The Ohio Fetal Homicide Law (ORC 2903.01) reads, “No person shall purposely, and with prior calculation and design, cause the death of another or the unlawful termination of another’s pregnancy.”
In early May three missing teens (Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight) escaped Castro’s “house of Horrors.”
[…] Ariel Castro, a 52-year-old former school bus driver, has been charged with kidnapping the girls off the streets of the city and holding them captive in his two-story home. He also faces additonal charges associated with causing abortions in the girls. (more here) […]