William Kelly was sentenced Monday in Carroll County Superior Court to serve two consecutive 40-year to life sentences for killing his girlfriend, Christine Falzone, and her unborn child in 2023. Kelly was convicted earlier this year of two counts of second-degree murder by a jury.
The prosecution and sentencing marked the first use in New Hampshire of a 2018 fetal homicide law that allows for potential life sentences for killing a fetus that is at least 20 weeks old.
Kelly assaulted Falzone inside their Ossipee home in December 2023, prosecutors alleged. Falzone was 33 years old and between 35 and 37 weeks pregnant, according to an autopsy by the state’s deputy chief medical examiner.
The consecutive sentences handed down Monday mean Kelly, who is 40, will serve at least 80 years before he is eligible for parole.
In 2023, police responded to Kelly’s single-room home after he called to say Falzone was unconscious and not breathing. She was found bleeding from the head, and had other visible bruises. Falzone’s father later told authorities that Kelly had a history of physically abusing his daughter.
Former Gov. Chris Sununu signed the fetal homicide bill into law in 2018. Under a prior statute, defendants could face a maximum of 15 years in prison for killing a fetus that is at least 20 weeks old.
