Courthouse Blasts Delay Au Pair’s Appeal
An appeal by the British au pair convicted of killing an infant in her care was postponed Friday when a transformer exploded in the courthouse, injuring five people, authorities said.
Three explosions rocked the basement 10 minutes before Louise Woodward’s hearing was to begin, and the building began filling with acrid smoke. Authorities ordered about 1,000 people inside to leave.
Woodward, now 20, was convicted of manslaughter in the February 1997 death of 8-month-old Matthew Eappen.
Fire Commissioner Martin Pierce said he believed the explosions were caused by an accidental short circuit.
The hearing, postponed until Monday, was to decide whether Woodward should have her criminal record wiped clean, go to prison or have her conviction stand.
Prosecutors planned to argue that the judge erred in reducing the jury’s verdict and sentencing Woodward to time served.
The defense says that whatever happens, she should not end up back behind bars.
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