A Massachusetts woman was arrested and charged with murder in a case that began 36 years ago in Northern Maine, when a Siberian Husky brought the dead body of a newborn to its owners’ doorstep.
Maine State Police detectives say the infant, known as Baby Jane Doe, was born at a gravel pit in Frenchville, Maine, and abandoned by her mother in sub-zero temperatures before the dog found her on December 7, 1985.
58-year-old Lee Ann Daigle was arrested Monday outside her home in Lowell, Massachusetts without incident and brough to Maine after waving extradition, police said in a statement this week.
She was charged with murder and is currently being held at the Aroostook County Jail in Houlton.
Daigle entered a plea of not guilty via Zoom in her first court appearance before District Court Judge Robert Langner on Tuesday, according to a report in the Bangor Daily News, which notes she has not been appointed an attorney.
Investigators said they were able to retrace the path of the dog to find the location in the gravel pit where Baby Jane Doe was born and left to freeze.
“Over the years through advancements in technology to include DNA and genetic genealogy the Maine State Police were able to identify” the suspect, police said in their statement about Daigle’s arrest.
In a 2014 Bangor Daily News article, Maine State Police Maj. Charles Love recalled arriving at the scene after Baby Jane Doe was discovered.
“It was so cold, just very, very cold,” Love said. “I was walking the scene, trying to gather information. It was so quiet in that gravel pit, and it appeared that a vehicle had driven in, as the tracks were very clear in the snow. Right near them were plainly a set of dog tracks. I turned and followed those paw prints right back to the house, where it had dropped the baby right by the door.”
Armand and Lorraine Pelletier, the owners of the dog, also spoke about the discovery in the 2014 article.
“This is something you don’t forget,” Amanda said, adding that their dog Paca had been let out in the morning but quickly returned home and tried to get the owners’ attention at a sliding glass door.
“She kept pounding, and after awhile, I went to go look, and I could not believe what I saw,” Amanda said. “I saw what looked like a little rag doll, but then we saw it was a frozen little baby.”
Lorraine said the infant was “a cute little girl with reddish blond hair” and that investigators told her “she could not have lived more than 30 minutes.”
Daigle’s next court appearance is scheduled for August 8, in Fort Kent District Court. She reportedly faces 25 years up to life in prison as well as fine of up to $50,000 if convicted.
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