'In shock,' woman freezes fetal remains

PITTSBURGH - A woman accused of putting the remains of her miscarried fetus into a freezer was scared and in shock after the stillbirth and a criminal charge against her should be dropped, her attorney said.

Christine Hutchinson, 22, of Pittsburgh, was held in jail yesterday in lieu of $500,000 bail on a single charge of abuse of a corpse. She was charged Thursday after authorities learned of the body in the freezer.

"She was in shock. She had a postpartum sort of feeling for what happened to her and didn't know what to do," her attorney, Lawrence Fisher, said yesterday.

An autopsy Friday indicated that the 20-week-old fetus had died in utero, apparently naturally, said Allegheny County Medical Examiner Karl E. Williams. More tests were planned.

Fisher said his client put the body into the freezer to preserve it while she sought guidance on what to do. He added that he planned to seek a bail reduction Tuesday. "Ms. Hutchinson's reaction to her postpartum depression is unfortunate, not criminal," Fisher said. *