Lane v. Commonwealth

Defendant, Helen Elayne Lane, was tried by a jury on an indictment charging her with murder of her newborn child. She was convicted of involuntary manslaughter, and in accordance with the jury’s verdict was sentenced to confinement in the State penitentiary for a period of five years.

Defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to show that the child’s death was caused by any criminal agency and that the trial court’s instruction defining involuntary manslaughter was an improper statement of law.

The evidence shows that the defendant, who was 17 years of age and was to be married at…