Mom accused of tossing baby into canal gets probation

Mom accused of tossing baby into canal gets probation
Lawyer: 'If she made a mistake, she made a mistake'

A woman once charged with murder for placing her newborn baby in a backpack and throwing it into a canal was sentenced to probation Thursday after pleading no contest to a reduced charge of manslaughter.

Under a plea agreement with prosecutors, 23-year-old Aimee Lee Weiss could eventually have the case erased from her record if she stays out of trouble during the three-year probation period. If she violates probation, she could go to prison for 15 years, according to the state attorney's office.

"If she made a mistake, she made a mistake,'' said Weiss's attorney, Ellis Rubin. "I've insisted all along that she was not guilty of murder.''

Weiss was indicted on first-degree murder charges for throwing the backpack containing her newborn baby boy into the canal in April 2001, when she was 17. Weiss, who delivered the baby at home alone, had insisted that the baby was stillborn after a secret pregnancy.

The charges were reduced to manslaughter in September after a state appeals court threw out her confession because Broward County sheriff's detectives used an improper Miranda warning to advise Weiss of her rights. The form, which has since been replaced, failed to tell suspects they had the right to an attorney during questioning.

Weiss had faced a potential life sentence if convicted on the original charge.