Pretrial hearing moved again for Norfolk teenager accused of concealing abortion
A pretrial hearing for a northeast Nebraska teenager accused of helping conceal a fetus after her mother reportedly helped her illegally terminate a pregnancy has been continued once again, this time moving to November.
By News Channel NebraskaMADISON, Neb. -- A pretrial hearing for a northeast Nebraska teenager accused of helping conceal a fetus after her mother reportedly helped her illegally terminate a pregnancy has been continued once again, this time moving to November.
A hearing for 18-year-old Celeste Burgess had been scheduled for Monday morning, but the hearing has been continued until Nov. 27. The jury trial, which had been scheduled to begin in November, is now slated for January.
Burgess and her mother, 41-year-old Jessica Burgess, both of Norfolk, are accused of burning and burying the fetus after the elder Burgess reportedly helped terminate her daughter's pregnancy with abortion medication. It is illegal to perform an abortion after 20 weeks in Nebraska. The alleged incident reportedly occurred while the younger Burgess was 17.
Another person, a then-21-year-old man, pleaded no contest to helping bury the fetus on rural land his parents own north of Norfolk and was sentenced to probation.
According to court records, the mother and daughter reportedly discussed terminating the pregnancy via Facebook messages, which were later acquired by law enforcement.
Jessica Burgess is scheduled to appear in court for a pretrial hearing in October. Her next appearance is scheduled for next month, with a pretrial hearing in November and a jury trial scheduled for January.