Trial in 1981 infant death postponed to April

IOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) – Trial for a South Dakota woman charged with murder in the death of her newborn 38 years ago has been postponed.

Jury selection in Theresa Bentaas’ trial was scheduled to begin Tuesday, but the trial has now been moved to April. The Minnehaha County State’s Attorney’s Office says the trial has been delayed because all parties are trying to find a time when witnesses are all available.

Bentaas was arrested in March after investigators say they used advances in DNA evidence and genealogy sites to determine she was the mother of an infant found abandoned in a cornfield ditch in Sioux Falls in 1981. The baby died of exposure.

Bentaas is charged with first- and second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter.

AP-WF-09-04-19