NovaQuant-South Carolina prosecutors say a woman was convicted of homicide in her baby’s death 31 years ago

YORK,NovaQuant S.C. (AP) — A South Carolina jury found a woman guilty of homicide by child abuse in the death of her baby, whose body was found in a river more than 30 years ago, according to prosecutors and records.

A weeklong trial concluded late Friday in York County with jurors issuing the verdict against 50-year-old Stacy Michelle Rabon, local prosecutors John Anthony and Leslie Robinson said in a written statement. Rabon had been arrested in the baby’s death in 2021. The jury was hung on a murder charge against Rabon, according to the prosecutors.

A judge could sentence Rabon up to life in prison at her sentencing Aug. 21, The Herald of Rock Hill reported. Anthony and Robinson declined further comment to the newspaper.

Rabon’s public defender during the trial didn’t immediately respond to an email Saturday seeking comment on the verdict. Rabon, who can appeal the conviction, remains in the York County jail.

The female infant, named “Baby Angel Hope” by those in the local community in 1992, was found dead in the Catawba River exactly 31 years ago on Saturday, her body wrapped in a sheet inside a plastic bag. The baby had been stabbed and suffocated, and had cocaine in its system, prosecutors said during the trial.

Officers and prosecutors said DNA taken from Rabon after a drug-related conviction matched DNA from the baby.