Almost five years ago, 4 ½ month old Katherine Phillips went missing in Ludington, Michigan. Her parents had an argument and her father took off with her. Baby Kate was never seen again. Dubbed “Baby Kate” by the media, there was a flurry of coverage about the missing infant and the searches conducted in the hopes of locating her were extensive. When the child was never found, dead or alive, the investigation took a different turn.
Disappearance Investigation Leads To Murder Investigation In Case Of Baby Kate
Sean Phillips, the baby’s father, was convicted in Mason County, Michigan of Unlawful Imprisonment in 2012. The clothing that Baby Kate had been wearing at the time of her disappearance was found in the pocket of his shorts but the baby was never seen again. However, after Phillip’s conviction, the police began treating the infant’s disappearance as a murder investigation. Now, the resulting charges have finally trickled down the pipeline.
Although police in Ludington, MI haven’t publicized whatever evidence they may have accumulated during the several-year-long investigation, one thing we do know they have is the letter. The letter, allegedly written by Phillips while in prison, was addressed to the infant’s mother Ariel Courtland, and claimed that Baby Kate was dead but it was all a terrible accident.
The letter, which was shared with the media by anonymous sources, claimed that Phillips didn’t know that his infant daughter was still in the backseat when he drove away from Ludington after the argument. It also claims that he assumed that the baby seat had been placed in his car to force him to go back and return it, thus being forced to confront Courtland again. So to avoid that confrontation, he intended to throw the seat out of the car and drive away.
“I pulled but it was jammed between the seats. That just made it worse. I grabbed it at the top and ripped it out as hard as I could. She was thrown from it. I didn’t know. I’m so sorry. Held her for a long time. Seemed like forever.” It then goes on to describe a father wretched with despair who didn’t know what to do. What it doesn’t provide though, is any clue as to where the incident took place or where baby’s body may be located.
Although Phillips is currently serving a 10 to 15 year prison sentence in the Michigan Department of Corrections for the Unlawful Imprisonment conviction, he is now scheduled to face trial for open murder in Mason County, Michigan. The Circuit Court jury trial is scheduled to begin on September 26, 2016 and is expected to take approximately 15 days. The trial is scheduled to take place in the Mason County Court before Judge Peter Wadel. Wadel is actually a district court judge, which means that handling a murder trial would be very unusual, however he chose to assign the trial to himself as Mason County’s other judges have conflicts in this case.
Under Michigan law, the term “Open Murder” means that the prosecutor didn’t want to choose between first-degree murder, second-degree murder and even in some cases, manslaughter. Instead, the choice is given to the jury. They are charged with deciding whether the defendant should be acquitted, or should be convicted of first degree or second degree murder.