Nearly four years to the day after the body of her newborn girl was found in a trash can after being stabbed more than 100 times, the Minnesota Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in the appeal of Nicole Beecroft's first-degree murder conviction.

Beecroft, now 21, was found guilty in 2008 in Washington County District Court and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Beecroft gave birth at her parents' Oakdale home early in the morning on April 10, 2007, according to court documents. She had considered leaving the baby at a hospital, but instead decided to kill her, testimony showed.

Beecroft stabbed the baby 135 times in the neck, chest and abdomen, and penetrated the baby's vital organs, according to court documents.

Her appeal to the Supreme Court focuses on two issues: whether she was denied her due process right to present a defense because she was barred from calling two expert witnesses who would have provided testimony favorable to her defense and whether a statement given by Beecroft to police at the hospital was admissible.

A decision likely won't be made in the appeal for several weeks.

JIM ANDERSON