PhD student pleads guilty to fatally injuring 6-week-old child

Nicole Virzi, a doctoral student who was weeks away from completing her PhD when she was arrested, has pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal homicide over the demise of six-week-old Leon Katz in 2024.

Virzi, 32, was studying at the University of California, San Diego. The offence carries a reported maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Leon’s mother, Savannah Roberts, addressed the court after the plea, describing the lasting impact on her family. She said the events had “eradicated my sense of safety across every domain of my life”.

Roberts added: “I’ve learned that the bogeyman is real and monsters really do live under the bed.” Virzi and Roberts became friends while working as research coordinators in Drexel University’s graduate psychology department in Philadelphia. Their friendship grew close enough for Virzi to serve as Roberts’ maid of honour.

In June 2024, Virzi travelled to Pittsburgh to visit Roberts and her family. According to police, Virzi told the parents that she had noticed blood around the groin of Leon’s twin brother, Ari. Roberts and her husband took Ari to hospital, leaving Leon in Virzi’s care.

Virzi later claimed that Leon had fallen from his baby bouncer and struck his head. She called 911, and he was pronounced deceased a few hours later. An autopsy reportedly found that Leon’s injuries resulted from blunt force trauma and were consistent with child abuse.

Virzi was subsequently arrested and questioned by investigators. Prosecutors said that, during questioning, she admitted causing Leon’s demise and described having experienced an urge to harm children from a young age. Ari survived. The report did not state when Virzi would be sentenced.