California woman arrested on charges of burying baby alive

LOS ANGELES:

A Southern California woman has been arrested on charges that she buried alive her newborn daughter under pieces of asphalt and rubble, in a case in which police successfully rescued the infant, authorities said on Monday.

Porche Washington, 33, appeared in court on Monday where she pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and child abuse, said Sarah Ardalani, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Washington, a resident of the Los Angeles suburb of Compton who authorities said was arrested last Thursday after investigators received a number of leads pointing them to her, faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if she is convicted of the charges.

An attorney for Washington could not be reached for comment.

On November 27, authorities received an emergency call reporting a baby crying in a riverbed in Compton, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.

Two deputies went to the location and heard an infant's muffled cry, and they found the baby girl buried alive under pieces of asphalt and rubble in a crevice along a bicycle path, the Sheriff's Department statement said.

The deputies pulled the baby out of the ground and paramedics took her to a hospital, where authorities said on Monday she remained under medical care in good condition.