His own verdict seemed to pain Common Pleas Judge Donald E. Machen yesterday as he addressed the Butler County midwife charged with a Bloomfield infant's death.

As a man with medical training, he said Judith A. Wilson's behavior was "abhorrent" in the November 2002 death of Isaac Daley after a botched home birth.

But as a judge, he said the actions legally did not rise to the criminal standard, and he acquitted her of involuntary manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child.

"This was a difficult case not on the facts, but to be able to follow the law and not allow my emotions, my training, my experience, my education in the skill that I had in delivering children, to interfere with my decision in this matter," Judge Machen said.

"Don't misunderstand the decision in this case. I certainly don't condone your conduct. I hold you accountable, but the law does not."

Judge Machen did find Mrs. Wilson guilty of practicing midwifery without a certificate, a summary offense, and fined her $100.

Mrs. Wilson, 53, of Portersville, declined comment afterward.

She was hired by Jonathan and Heather Daley to perform a home birth for their first child Nov. 21, 2002, but Isaac came out feet first, signaling a "footling breech."

Mrs. Wilson tried to coax and pull the baby out, causing devastating injuries that resulted in Isaac's death two days later.

"I don't know if she ignored the risks or didn't know the risks, but she plowed straight ahead," Assistant District Attorney Lisa Pellegrini said in her closing argument.

The Daleys did not want to press charges against Mrs. Wilson, but prosecutors had her arrested in 2004. Ms. Pellegrini stressed in her closing that Mrs. Wilson should be held accountable for not calling 911 as soon as she realized it was a breech birth.

Instead, Mrs. Wilson asked Mrs. Daley if she wanted to go to a hospital, and she declined.

Mr. Daley, who did not attend yesterday's verdict, said he was happy to hear that Mrs. Wilson was acquitted of the most serious charges. His family has since moved to Valencia, Butler County, where they have had three more children since Isaac's death -- all using midwives.

In announcing the verdict after a non-jury trial that stretched over seven months because of various delays, Judge Machen said he could find few cases of this kind in U.S. history, and none could provide much guidance.

Mrs. Wilson was a "certified professional midwife," a category that is sanctioned in 26 states, but not Pennsylvania. To legally practice as a midwife in Pennsylvania, one must be a "certified nurse midwife," which requires extensive medical training. CPMs are specifically trained in out-of-hospital births.

Because they eschew hospital births, Amish and Mennonite communities rely almost exclusively on CPMs or midwives with no certification at all. Several Amish attended past hearings and two midwives were present for yesterday's verdict.

Katherine Prown, of the Big Push for Midwives Campaign, which is advocating for CPMs to be sanctioned in every state, said that the parties in the case would have been spared a seven-year saga if CPMs had been approved here.

"When a state like PA has no mechanism for licensing midwives who specialize in out-of-hospital birth and requiring them to undergo the educational and training process required to earn the CPM credential, it's left up to the criminal courts to investigate and discipline midwives, which takes many years and costs hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars that could be much better spent administrating a licensure program," Dr. Prown wrote in an e-mail.

The Daleys have used both a certified nurse midwife and unlicensed midwives. Mr. Daley said he is more comfortable with the latter because they are less "medical" and don't overcompensate for risks in fear of legal liability.

After the verdict, defense attorney Lee Rothman said the state Legislature should tackle this issue, but Mrs. Wilson won't be involved.

She has given up on midwifery, Mr. Rothman said, and is now taking classes at a seminary.

Yesterday she avoided a jail sentence, but not the scorn of the judge.

"Your sentence, in addition to the $100," Judge Machen said, "is you will have to look yourself in the mirror every day of your life and know what you did."