HARRISBURG — Attorney General Michelle Henry announced that a woman who acted as a midwife and failed to seek medical care for an ailing baby in Sullivan County during a 2022 home birth will serve 8 ⅔ years to 17 ⅓ years in prison.
Brigitte Meckes, 49, was sentenced Tuesday after a jury convicted her of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, and related charges regarding the 2022 death of the infant.
Meckes did not have a medical license, but served as a midwife during the birth, and did not seek emergency medical care when the baby was obviously in severe distress. Instead, Meckes and the child’s mother attempted unconventional methods to “treat” the child, who died about two days later.
Sullivan County President Judge Russel Shurtleff ordered the sentence, saying Meckes has shown no remorse for contributing to the child’s death.
“This defendant had the means and time to simply pick up a phone and call for aid for a helpless baby who desperately needed it,” Attorney General Henry said. “That makes this case even more tragic — that the people who should have been helping, instead let the child die. The prosecution of this defendant, as well as the child’s parents, resulted in justice and accountability for the criminal conduct — but no sentence will ever undo the harm they caused.”
The Office of Attorney General presented evidence showing that Meckes and the baby’s parents, Drew and Amy Hoenigke, knew the baby was in trouble. Text messages revealed that they all understood the baby was dying, yet no one called 9-1-1 for help.
In July, Meckes, of New York, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a child, and misdemeanor reckless endangerment.
Amy and Drew Hoenigke previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced regarding their respective conduct.
The cases were prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Jaime Keating.
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