Mother throws newborn daughter out of window, to death because ‘she thought a child would ruin her career as a Porsche executive’
A woman has been sentenced to seven and a half years in prison after throwing her newborn daughter out of a window because she was ‘afraid a baby would ruin her career’.
Katarina Jovanovic, 28, from Lauffen am Neckar, state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, was found guilty of manslaughter by the Heilbronn District Court on Wednesday, July 3.
The judges heard how 10 months ago, on September 12, she had secretly given birth at home and then dropped her baby daughter almost 3.5 metres onto the asphalt from the window of her apartment.
Shocked passers-by found the body of the minutes-old baby with a crushed skull under Jovanovic’s balcony and called the police.
Katarina Jovanovic, 28, from Lauffen am Neckar, state of Baden-Württemberg, pictured in court
Prosecutors told the court that Jovanovic (pictured) thought becoming a mother would ruin her career as a manager in Porsche’s legal department
Jovanovic confessed to the crime at the start of the trial in April, but could not explain to the court when that happened, ASB Zeitung reported.
She also claimed that she did not know she was pregnant. But the prosecution accused her of murder and of deliberately hiding her pregnancy from colleagues and neighbors.
Prosecutors told the court that Jovanovic thought motherhood would jeopardize her career as a manager in Porsche’s legal department.
Public prosecutor Mareike Hafendoerfer said: ‘The suspect was not prepared to put aside her life plans, and in particular her professional development, for a child.
“That was her decision when the baby was born, and therefore the criteria for a murder conviction have been met.”
According to Jovanovic’s lawyers, the case was at most manslaughter, as she accidentally dropped the baby after giving birth alone at home, without realizing she was pregnant.
The newborn was thrown 12 feet out of an apartment window onto the asphalt below (pictured is a general view of the apartment building)
Defence lawyer Malte Hoech, 53, said: ‘It is a tragedy that affects me personally. My client did not even know she was pregnant.
‘When she suddenly held the bloody baby in her hands, she found herself in an exceptional psychological situation.
“It was an accident, she dropped the baby. How the child ended up on the windowsill has yet to be determined.”
Ultimately, the court accepted the lesser charge of manslaughter, but sentenced her to seven and a half years in prison, more than the three years the defense had demanded.
Her legal team said they plan to appeal the verdict.
Neighbors told local media they had no idea Jovanovic was expecting a baby.
One of them said: ‘No one noticed that the woman was pregnant. Recently she had changed and stopped talking to us.
“We thought she was stressed at work.”
