Woodward Louise

British au pair, hired on 11/18/1996 by the Eappen family in America to care for their infant, Matthew. On 2/04/1997, 3:45 PM she called 911 Emergency when the baby stopped breathing, saying that he had choked on his vomit. At the trial, it was determined that she had shaken the nine-month-old baby because she was frustrated by his crying. Taken to the hospital, he was put on life support and died 2/09/1997 shortly before 11:00 AM, Boston. Louise was arrested on 2/05/1997, 5:00 PM, and her trial started on 7/10/1997, Cambridge. She was convicted on 10/30/1997, 9:30 PM and sentenced to life in prison on 10/31/1997, 3:00 PM. An appeal was made on 11/04/1997, 2:04 PM and a week later, Judge Hiller Zobel reduced the charge to manslaughter on 11/10/1997. Louise was freed on 11/10/1997, c. 7:30 PM, Boston. After serving 279 days in a Massachusetts jail, Louise returned to England in 1998. Her return to private life was not easy as various publicity incidents followed her, such as a fraudulent claim by an acquaintance that she was carrying his baby. Instead of a comforting family, she found that her parents had separated and were under prosecution for skimming $75,000 from her defense fund, set up by supporters who believed in her innocence. Her dad, a furniture maker, had moved in with a girlfriend and Louise moved in with her mom, a clerical worker, and her younger sister. Louise enrolled in law school in London in 1998 and lives with carefully chosen female friends, trying to avoid reporters and photographers as well as callous fellow students. On 7/17/2000, she appeared in court again - this time beside her parents, on trial for fraud. January 20, 2004 marked her first day in her new law career. She obtained a 2-year training contract with a general law firm in northwest England after completing her legal studies in England. Link to Wikipedia biography Read less