The Devastating Stillbirth That Led to Murder Charges
Moira Akers, a stay-at-home mother of two young children, experienced every parent's worst nightmare when she delivered a stillborn baby alone in her bathroom. While her youngest child slept downstairs and her husband was picking up their eldest from the school bus stop, Akers went into labor and gave birth to a baby who showed no signs of life.
According to court documents, Akers wrapped the newborn in a towel but quickly realized he wasn't crying or moving. She had not felt fetal movement for several days and had concluded "it had already passed," she later told investigators. Devastated but unsure what to do, she cut the umbilical cord with cuticle scissors, brought the stillborn to her bedroom, and eventually placed the remains in a bag in her closet.
When her husband returned home, he found blood throughout the upstairs hallway, bathroom, and bedroom. He discovered his wife still bleeding profusely while cleaning the bathroom and immediately called 911. Akers didn't disclose the stillbirth to anyone until questioned by hospital staff, and she later told police where she had placed the remains in her home.
Prosecution Based on 17th-Century Science
The state of Maryland charged Akers with second-degree murder and first-degree child abuse resulting in death. Prosecutors argued that Akers had "snuffed out" the newborn's life by suffocation, despite substantial evidence indicating the baby was not born alive.
The prosecution's case relied heavily on the lung float test, a controversial forensic method dating back to the 1600s that claims to determine whether a baby was born alive or dead. The National Association of Medical Examiners has stated the test has "known pitfalls" and is of "questionable value," with critics comparing it to 17th-century witch trials where women were thrown into water and deemed witches if they floated.
During Akers' trial, Maryland's then-chief medical examiner, Dr. David Fowler, testified for the state, championing the lung float test as irrefutable evidence. Fowler was later investigated over allegations that he colluded with law enforcement to falsify information in more than 100 police custody deaths and has since retired from expert testimony in Maryland.
Widespread Criminalization of Pregnancy Loss
Akers' case is not isolated. Across the United States, prosecutors are increasingly using antiquated laws to criminalize women for pregnancy outcomes. According to a recent Harvard study, approximately 21,000 pregnancies end in stillbirths annually—a much higher rate than previously believed.
In the first year after Roe v. Wade fell, there were at least 412 pregnancy-related prosecutions—the highest number documented since Pregnancy Justice began tracking in 1973. At least 161 people have been prosecuted for pregnancy loss in the last two decades, with 24 criminalized in the first two years after Roe's reversal.
"We're seeing women who are, all of a sudden, villains in their own tragedies, and their mugshot is plastered all over the news before they can even launch their defenses," said Kulsoom Ijaz, senior policy counsel at Pregnancy Justice.
Archaic Laws Still on the Books
Fifteen states still have laws criminalizing concealment of pregnancy loss, while nineteen states have statutes that make it a crime to dispose of pregnancy remains or categorize such disposal as "abuse of a corpse." These laws originate from 17th-century England when unmarried pregnant women were considered immoral and more likely to kill newborns.
Concealment-of-birth statutes date back to 1696 when ten American colonies adopted them from English common law. During that era, the most common crimes women faced were having sex out of wedlock (punishable by public whipping) and concealment of birth (punishable by death).
Even progressive states maintain these antiquated laws. Michigan, despite recently passing a constitutional amendment protecting reproductive freedom, still punishes unmarried women for hiding pregnancy outcomes. Massachusetts criminalizes "concealment of the death of a child born out of wedlock" as contrary to "chastity, morality, decency, and good order."
Parallel Cases Across the Nation
In 2015, Arkansas charged and convicted Anne Bynum for concealing a birth because she didn't tell her mother she was pregnant. Bynum delivered a stillborn, went about her daily routine, then brought the remains to the hospital in a plastic shopping bag.
"I never thought I'd be arrested for experiencing a tragedy," Bynum told The New York Times. She received a six-year prison sentence before her conviction was ultimately overturned.
Farah Diaz-Tello, an attorney on Bynum's legal team and senior counsel at If/When/How, explained: "These cases come into being because somebody was shocked and offended." She noted that hospital staff reactions often determine whether a tragedy becomes a crime.
In 2023, Ohio woman Brittany Watts faced abuse of a corpse charges after miscarrying at home and attempting to flush the remains. Doctors had confirmed her fetus was nonviable and she was at significant risk of death or sepsis, but she left the hospital after waiting eight hours for an ethics panel decision regarding Ohio's abortion ban.
"I don't want what happened to me to ever happen to any other woman," Watts said after filing a federal lawsuit against hospital staff and law enforcement. An Ohio grand jury ultimately declined to indict her.
No Right Way to Handle Pregnancy Loss
Prosecutors target women regardless of how they handle miscarriage or stillbirth remains. Women have been investigated for flushing fetal remains, burying them, and bringing them to hospitals. Even without prosecution or imprisonment, their lives are upended by media coverage featuring mug shots and dramatic language like "abuse of a corpse."
"This is about decriminalization, yes," Diaz-Tello said. "But it's also about restoring people's dignity and centering the humanity of people who are going through these experiences who should be met with compassion, not punishment."
Legal Reforms and Akers' Ongoing Battle
If/When/How, a national legal organization defending reproductive justice, is working with state partners to repeal antiquated laws in blue and purple states. They've successfully passed pregnancy-loss protections in California and Washington, with similar bills recently introduced in Kentucky and Massachusetts.
"There are states with progressive legislation around reproductive rights—passed in the aftermath of Dobbs—but they're falling short of protecting people navigating the aftermath of what are essentially medical events and tragedies," said Ijaz.
In Maryland, Akers' conviction was overturned last year after she served three years in prison. The Maryland Supreme Court ruled that her internet searches about abortion and lack of prenatal care were inadmissible evidence. Her retrial is set for June, with the state's main evidence now being the controversial lung float test.
The Maryland Legislature recently introduced a bill to ban the lung float test in cases like Akers', which is likely to pass before the end of the legislative session next month.
"That's the end of the case," said Debra Saltz, Akers' defense attorney. "The state can't go forward without it. They don't have anything else."
Akers has been out of prison for about a year, awaiting her retrial this summer. She earned her paralegal degree while incarcerated and is now working. Her husband and family have supported her throughout the ordeal, and she receives regular supervised visits with her two children.
"They know she was in jail, they know why, they know there was a baby—and they love her," Saltz said of Akers' children. "They're just living their lives, and she's doing her best to make sure it stays that way."
