Burial Delayed For 'Baby Doe' Bella Bond
BOSTON (CBS) – The burial plot has been picked, but Bella Bond won't be laid to rest just yet.
New information in the murder investigation of the girl previously known only as "Baby Doe" has the medical examiner putting a hold on her body.
When Bella was identified September 18, District Attorney Dan Conley said her body would be turned over to her biological father.
"We have a next-of-kin here, so he's going to make that decision," Conley said at the time.
But almost two weeks later, her father has been told he'll have to postpone burial plans for one to two weeks.
A spokesperson for the district attorney says it's because the cause of death is still in question.
He says it's also because of new information developed after the arrest of Bella's mother, Rachelle Bond, accused of helping dispose of the body, and boyfriend Michael McCarthy, accused of punching her to death.
State Police tell WBZ-TV her body hasn't been released because they're developing the case for prosecution.
New York forensic science expert Lawrence Kobilinsky says it's highly unusual for law enforcement to hold onto a body for more than three months, even when new information comes to light.
"Even without a cause of death, a jury can convict," he says. "It seems to me that so much time has elapsed. I don't think there will be any further analysis that will be done that will tell us anything about cause of death. I think it's time we lay this child to rest."
