Wyoming Woman Arrested in Cold Case Death of Upper Peninsula Baby

ST. IGNACE—A Wyoming woman has been arrested and is awaiting extradition to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to face arraignment in the death 25 years ago of a baby found discarded in the waste pit of an outhouse, authorities said Wednesday.

Investigators traveled to Wyoming on Tuesday to interview the 58-year-old woman, who confirmed she was the child’s mother, Mackinac County Sheriff Edward M. Wilk said in a statement.

The woman gave investigators information “that provided probable cause to arrest her on the charge of homicide-open murder,” Wilk said.

The baby girl was found in the waste pit of a Garnet Lake campground outhouse in Hudson Township and was dubbed “Baby Garnet.”

The woman formerly resided in the Garnet Lake area, Wilk said.

In the summer of the 2017, investigators began reviewing the case and employed forensic genetic genealogy. By working with a genealogist and investigating the submitted DNA, investigators were provided with family blood lines and the name of her likely birth mother, Wilk said.

A worker discovered Baby Garnet on June 26, 1997, while emptying a septic pit at the campground. An autopsy and forensics tests showed the infant had gestated for 38-40 weeks, or about full term.
Police at the time believed the child was placed in the outhouse as early as June 1.

The community raised nearly $1,000 to bury the child in a white casket at Hudson Township Cemetery.