Woman who hid her baby’s body in dumpster doesn’t get jail time

A young Amherstburg woman who disposed of her newborn baby’s body in a dumpster in London was given a suspended sentence Wednesday.

It was on July 16, 2016, that a homeless man found 25-year-old Samantha Richard’s child inside a grocery bag while rummaging through a dumpster at 675 Richmond St.

Richards pleaded guilty to one count of concealing the body of a child in May.

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“She’s very shaken, this is an extremely stressful time for her,” said Richard’s lawyer, Patricia Brown, outside the courthouse.

The sentence means Richards won’t have any jail time, but she will have a criminal record. Brown had hoped for a conditional discharge.

Though it wasn’t the sentence she was hoping for, Brown said the judge’s decision was well-reasoned and that he was compassionate.

“We all hope for the best for Ms. Richards. We hope that she will be able to move past this … pick up the pieces of her life, and forgive herself.”

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After lawyers gave their final submissions in July, Brown told reporters that her client had become a recluse.

Richards originally also faced a charge for not getting help during childbirth, but that charge was dropped by Crown attorney Konrad De Koning late last year.

Richards told police the baby was dead when it was born.