The death of a baby decapitated during birth in Georgia in 2023 has been ruled a homicide by the medical examiner.
Twenty-year-old Jessica Ross went into labor at Southern Regional Medical Center in July 2023. After shoulder dystocia occurred, Dr. Tracey St. Julian allegedly tried traction techniques that caused fatal injuries.
The medical examiner said fractures to the baby’s skull, head and neck caused by manipulation led to his death. The parents were not informed of the decapitation until later.
The family has filed a lawsuit alleging wrongful death and negligence against the doctor, nurses, and hospital. Police have completed an investigation and given findings to prosecutors.
The hospital claims the death occurred “in utero” before delivery, but the parents allege staff concealed the decapitation and pressured them to cremate without an autopsy.
Authorities are reviewing potential criminal charges in the newborn’s traumatic death during the botched delivery. The civil lawsuit and medical examiner’s homicide ruling signal accountability for the childbirth tragedy.