For Ethan Katz and Savannah Roberts, the evening of June 15 was already stressful. They had gone to a Pittsburgh hospital seeking treatment for Ari, one of their six-week-old twin sons, who had a bloody and mysterious injury to his genitals.
Their longtime friend, Nicole Elizabeth Virzi, was visiting from San Diego. She was watching the other twin, Leon, in their apartment.
Later that night, they received a harrowing call from Virzi. She told them Leon had fallen out of his bassinet and struck his head on the floor.
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By dawn, Leon was pronounced dead. A young family was shattered. And, as more details emerged about his final moments, investigators started questioning Virzi’s story.
Grim questions
Leon’s CT scan showed a severe skull fracture to the left side of the head, along with multiple brain bleeds. An autopsy determined they were caused by blunt force trauma consistent with child abuse.
Within days, Virzi was charged with homicide and two counts each of aggravated assault and child endangerment. Prosecutors allege she caused Ari’s injuries and the injuries to Leon were not “natural or accidental,” the criminal complaint said.
Virzi, 30, has pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail, her lawyer David Shrager told CNN.
In a rare decision, prosecutors filed a notice last week saying they intend to pursue the death penalty against her.
“The decision to seek such is made only after careful and serious consideration of whether we believe we have evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the aggravating factors outweigh potential mitigating factors,” Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr told CNN.
Since 1900, Pennsylvania has executed only two women. Of the 109 convicted felons currently on the state’s death row, only one is a woman, according to the Death Penalty Information Centre which collects data on capital punishment nationwide.
Suspect doing PhD in clinical psychology
Virzi has been pursuing a doctorate in clinical psychology through a joint program at San Diego State University and UC San Diego. She was scheduled to get her PhD in a few weeks, her lawyer said.
In her university bio, she noted health behaviour change and clinical health psychology as among her areas of research.
“My research aims to explore the complex interplay between psychological factors — such as depression, stress, negative affect, and trauma — and critical health outcomes and behaviours,” she wrote.
She was in Pittsburgh to visit the Katz family and staying at an Airbnb, according to Shrager who added she has known the parents for years and is devastated by what happened to their infant sons.
Virzi told investigators she had spent part of the afternoon of June 15 with the family, according to the criminal complaint. She said she noticed injuries on Ari and notified his parents.
There was blood in his nappy and his penis was red and swollen, according to the criminal complaint.
“She … photographed the injury and sent it to Ethan Katz,” it said.
Ari also had additional injuries, including scratches to his right cheek and bruises below his belly button, the criminal complaint said. The parents denied causing the injuries and said they first learned about them from Virzi.
“The parents … stated that prior to Virzi’s contact with the children, they (the twins) had no medical emergencies or treatment, other than routine medical care,” the criminal complaint stated.
Virzi’s lawyer declined to comment on his client’s assertion the injuries were caused by someone else.
“We’re going to be litigating those elements at the appropriate place and time, which is in the court,” Shrager said.
CNN’s efforts to reach Ethan Katz and Savannah Roberts were unsuccessful.
Leon’s parents left him in Virzi’s care about 6.30pm as they took his twin to the hospital, the criminal complaint said.
Virzi told investigators that she fell asleep while the baby was in a bouncer seat and woke up later to get him a bottle.
She left him unstrapped in the bouncer seat and heard him screaming while she was in the kitchen, she said, according to the criminal complaint.
She said she then found him lying on the floor with a bump on his head. It is unclear why she stated on the 911 call the baby was in a bassinet while the complaint refers to a bouncer seat.
Virzi told investigators she notified the parents before calling 911. Ethan Katz got home around the same time as first responders arrived, the criminal complaint said.
Prosecutors allege the injuries to both children are a result of Virzi’s abuse. The District Attorney’s office cited aggravating factors that it believes make the alleged crimes suitable for capital punishment, including means of torture and a significant history of felony convictions involving the use or threat of violence.
“The statute provides aggravating and mitigating factors to consider when determining whether a case warrants seeking a sentence of death,” Zappala said.
But Virzi’s lawyer said his client does not have a criminal record, and the prosecutors plan to use her alleged abuse of Ari as her felony history in Leon’s death investigation.
“They’re going to try to say she has a pre-existing felony because of the other child being harmed,” Shrager said.
He said he had notified his client about prosecutors’ plan to seek the death penalty.
“She’s handling it as well as can be expected. She’s remaining positive. But, of course, that’s always difficult news for the defendant and the family,” he said.
Pennsylvania law allows prosecutors to seek the death penalty in various cases, including if the victim is a law enforcement officer, a child under the age of 12 or a prosecution witness to a murder.
But the state hasn’t held an execution since 1999.
Last year, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro announced he will not issue any execution warrants during his term. He urged state politicians to abolish the death penalty.
Virzi is in an Allegheny County jail awaiting a pretrial conference next month. A trial date has not been set.
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