Pittsburgh Woman Gets 35 to 80 Years for Killing Best Friend's 6-Week-Old Son

Nicole Virzi, 32, was sentenced on Wednesday to between 35 and 80 years in prison for the death of her best friend's infant son. The Allegheny County District Attorney's Office accepted a plea deal that reduced her original capital murder charge to third-degree murder, ending a case that had previously carried the potential for the death penalty.

The victim, Leon Katz, was six weeks old when he died in June 2024. At the time, Virzi was in Pittsburgh visiting Savannah Roberts, her close friend from the University of California San Diego doctoral program. Roberts and her husband, Ethan Katz, had taken their other twin, Ari, to the hospital after finding unexplained wounds on the boy's body. Virzi offered to watch Leon while the parents were away.

Late that night, Virzi called police, reporting that Leon had fallen from a baby bouncer. Medics rushed the infant to a nearby children's hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police investigators later determined that the severity of the injuries was inconsistent with a fall from that height. The criminal complaint filed by Pittsburgh police ruled the death a homicide caused by blunt force trauma to the head. Investigators also concluded that Virzi was responsible for the earlier injuries found on Ari.

Virzi told investigators she had always possessed a compulsion she could not control to harm children. Prosecutors stated that Virzi used her trusted relationship with the family to position herself for the act. The Allegheny County District Attorney's Office said in a statement that it had been committed to taking the case to trial but agreed to the plea after consulting with the family and considering the community's best interest.

Savannah Roberts, the victim's mother, wrote a letter to Judge Jill E. Rangos detailing the lasting psychological impact of the crime. Roberts stated that her self-confidence was shattered and that she would never forgive herself for failing to protect her children. She described how she could not use the bathroom or shower alone for nearly a year without Ethan standing outside the door holding Ari.

Phil DiLucente, a local criminal law attorney, noted that Virzi must serve the full 35-year minimum before becoming eligible for parole. He said it is highly unlikely a parole board would grant her release, citing the premeditated nature of the crime and the fact that she flew across the country to see her friend before acting. An attorney for Virzi was not immediately available for comment.

Roberts added in her letter to the judge that she has never been able to leave Ari alone with a friend since the incident. She expressed concern that she may never be able to let her surviving twin son out of her sight.