A knife-wielding mother who “drenched” her infant son in boiling water has been jailed for seven years.
Passing sentence yesterday at the Central Criminal Court, Mr Justice David Keane said one of the aggravating factors was the “dreadful injuries” perpetrated on her 20-month-old son.
The court heard that the infant had sustained 18% total body surface area scald burns to his face and upper body, which has left him with permanent scarring.
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The judge commended the social care worker who was falsely imprisoned by the woman on her “remarkable presence of mind and courage” in protecting the woman’s two boys and said there could be little doubt her response averted an “even greater tragedy”.
He accepted that the accused was suffering with a mental disorder at the time and that she had a mild intellectual disability. The court was previously told that the defence of insanity was not available to the woman.
At her sentencing hearing last July, the court heard a victim impact statement from the social worker where she said that she is kept awake at night by the “vivid images” of the tot’s skin peeling from his “raw and pink” face and his high pitched screams.
The social worker had barred a door to try and prevent the mother getting close to the children and later placed herself between her and her two boys before carrying them to safety, the court had also heard.
The accused woman, who can’t be named, was originally charged with two counts of attempted murder of her two sons, then 20-month-olds, on October 9, 2019 at her home. She failed in a bid to have the attempted murder charges against her dismissed last year.
Mr Justice Keane said the accused had been diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder, which she is currently in remission for and a minor intellectual disability.
She had also been prescribed antipsychotic and anti-depressive medication.
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