Jury Finds Manhattan Nanny Guilty of Killing 2 Children While Parents Were Away
The nanny from Manhattan who killed the two children under her care while their parents are away was found guilty of murder.
CNN reported that the 12-panel jury found 55-year-old Yoselyn Ortega guilty on two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder for stabbing and killing six-year-old Lucia and two-year-old Leo inside their posh Upper West Side apartment on Oct. 25, 2012.
The members of the jury did not accept Ortega's claims that she was mentally unstable at the time of the crime.
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The victims' father, Kevin Krim, was present in the courtroom when the verdict was read. He reportedly sat in the front row, next to a couple of alternate jurors who attended the court hearing every day. Meanwhile, his wife and the mother of the victims Marina Krim was not present at that time.
While Lucia and Leo's father became very emotional during the reading of the verdict, Ortega appeared motionless as she learned about her fate.
After the verdict has been read, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance said at a news conference that was reported by the New York Times that the six-men, six-women jury "rightly held Yoselyn Ortega accountable." The DA also praised the jurors "for their diligence throughout this incredibly difficult and heartbreaking trial."
David Curtis, one of the jurors who listened to the testimonies from 53 witnesses for six weeks, also expressed his feelings about the outcome. "As a father of two children myself, I can't imagine — no parent should have to experience the loss of a child," Curtis emotionally said. "This was a very difficult decision for us. There were some raised voices and a lot of tears," he added.
According to CNN, the children's mother left them in Ortegas' care to take her other daughter Nessie to her swimming lesson at a YMCA nearby. They both agreed to meet up at 5:30 p.m. for Lucia's dance class, but the kids and their nanny never arrived on time. Mrs. Krim grew worried and decided to come back home to check on them.
Upon arrival, she saw that the lights on their home were turned off. She asked the doorman of their apartment if the kids left, but he said that he did not notice them going out of the building. She reportedly returned home and checked the bathroom, where she discovered both Lucia and Leo stabbed to death in the tub.
She also found Ortega on the floor, stabbing herself in an attempt to end her own life. During that time, Mr. Krim was just coming home from a business trip from the West Coast when the police reached out to him at the John F. Kennedy International Airport to inform him about the devastating news.
To help the family heal, Marina and Kevin created the Lulu & Leo Fund in order to help other children and families develop creative confidence. Their family also grew with two more children, Felix and Linus, since the tragic event.
Ortega might be facing a lifetime imprisonment at her sentencing hearing which will be held on Monday, May 14.
