Jury deadlocks in Pa. toddler-slaying case

MEADVILLE, Pa. (AP) — A northwestern Pennsylvania woman accused of killing her fiance’s 22-month-old daughter is to face another trial because the jury has deadlocked.

The Crawford County jury said Monday it could not reach a verdict in the trial of 25-year-old Melynda French after deliberating more than 13 hours over three days.

Kierstan Bressette died at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh on Feb. 5, a day after police and paramedics found her unresponsive at a Cambridge Springs apartment. French maintains that the baby tripped on an extension cord and hit her head on a car seat, but investigators dispute that.

District Attorney Francis Schultz says he plans a retrial in June.