A Nebraska woman who advertised herself as a midwife specializing in home births — but who prosecutors said did not have the proper certification — is facing a homicide charge after the troubled delivery of a newborn resulted in the baby’s death.

The midwife, Angela Hock, who turned herself in to the police on Tuesday for the June 17 death of the 2-day-old baby, appeared in Douglas County Court in Omaha on Friday, and was expected to be released later that day on a $25,000 bond.

Stuart J. Dornan , a lawyer for Ms. Hock, 36, said in an interview on Friday night that his client planned to plead not guilty to the charge of negligent child abuse resulting in the death of the baby. The felony charge, which both he and prosecutors said was rarely brought against midwives, carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.

Despite not having a certification to practice as a midwife, prosecutors said, Ms. Hock had tried to perform a breech birth, when there is an elevated risk to a baby because its feet and buttocks, not head, are first to exit the birth canal.