Nancy Jean Trottier is an alleged killer from North Dakota who has been charged with the murder of a newborn forty five years ago
According to police reports the body of a newborn was found on the campus of Valley State University in 1981. The newborn had been suffocated with a plastic bag and had the umbilical cord removed. The murder would go unsolved for forty five years
With the advancement in DNA testing officers would be able to find a connection to Nancy Jean Trottier. Trottier and her husband would provide police with a DNA sample which would later prove that Trottier had given birth to the newborn
Nancy Jean Trottier would be arrested and has been charged with murder
Nancy Jean Trottier News
A woman has been arrested 45 years after her newborn baby was found dead on a college campus in North Dakota, according to online records and multiple reports.
Online jail records reviewed by PEOPLE show that the Barnes County State’s Attorney’s Office filed a Class AA felony murder charge against 65-year-old Nancy Jean Trottier on Tuesday, April 7.
Trottier is accused of murdering her newborn baby, who was found behind the Valley City State University campus — where she was a student from 1978 to 1982 —in April 1981 with a plastic bag over her face and her umbilical cord still attached, KVLY and Valley News Live reported.
An autopsy found that the infant, who was dubbed “Rebecca” by authorities, had been alive at birth and died from acute asphyxia, consistent with suffocation, per the outlets, citing police.
After the case went cold for decades, advances in DNA technology led to the case being reopened and the baby’s body being exhumed in July 2019, KVLY, Valley News Live, and KX News reported.
Once DNA was extracted from her remains and the baby was reburied, investigators received a genetic genealogy report pointing to possible relatives of the newborn by August 2020, which investigators say ultimately led to Trottier.
According to an affidavit reviewed by the outlets, Trottier was interviewed in October 2021 and allegedly told investigators, “Maybe it was me,” and “It could be, maybe it was me.”
Trottier agreed to provide a DNA sample, and her husband’s DNA was collected in December 2021.
A DNA analysis returned in June 2023 concluded that it is 3.481 quadrillion times more likely that the baby is the biological child of Trottier and her husband than an unrelated individual, the outlets reported, citing the affidavit.
The forensic report also indicated that Nancy Jean Trottier’s DNA matched that of tissue paper recovered from the scene, the affidavit alleges, per the outlets.
Jail records reviewed by PEOPLE show that Trottier, who is from Arizona, is being held at the Stutsman County Correctional Center.
Trottier appeared in court on Monday, April 13. During the hearing, her attorney, Luke Heck, disputed Barnes County State’s Attorney Tonya Duffy’s claim that the case against her is “strong,” Inforum reported.
A preliminary hearing and Trottier’s arraignment have been scheduled for May 21 in Barnes County, according to online court records.
Woman Arrested After DNA Links Her to Baby’s Death 45 Years Ago
Nancy Jean Trottier More News
More than four decades after a newborn girl was found suffocated and abandoned on a North Dakota college campus, authorities say DNA technology has finally led to a murder charge against a 65-year-old Arizona woman.
Nancy Jean Trottier, of Sun Lakes, Arizona, appeared in court Monday in Barnes County after investigators linked her through DNA to the infant known for decades only as “Rebecca,” Valley News Live in North Dakota reported.
The newborn’s body was discovered on April 16, 1981, in a wooded area behind a dorm on the Valley City State College campus. The baby still had her umbilical cord attached, and a plastic covering had been placed over her face.
An autopsy determined the infant had been born alive about three days before her body was discovered, and that she died from acute asphyxia, consistent with suffocation, the outlet reported.
For years, investigators had no suspect and no identity for the child. Police gave the baby the name “Rebecca” before she was buried.
The case was reopened in 2019 after advances in DNA technology. Authorities exhumed the child’s remains and used genetic genealogy to track down possible relatives.
The investigation eventually led to Trottier, who attended the college from 1978 to 1982.
During a 2021 interview, Trottier reportedly became emotional and told investigators, “maybe it was me” and “It could be, maybe it was me,” according to court documents obtained by Valley News Live and KVLY-TV.
DNA results returned in 2023 provided a breakthrough.
Investigators said it is 3.481 quadrillion times more likely that Trottier and her husband are the biological parents of the infant than unrelated individuals, the outlets reported. DNA consistent with Trottier was also found on tissue paper recovered at the scene.
Nancy Jean Trottier now faces a Class AA felony murder charge. She was being held on $750,000 bond, according to online court records.
She is scheduled to return to court for a preliminary hearing and arraignment on May 21.
DNA links Arizona woman to abandoned newborn murder cold case from 1981 | Fox News
