The Globe and Mail, by TIMOTHY APPLEBY, October 5, 2006
Mother-on-child homicides are rare in Canada but far from unknown.
Twenty-seven of the 37 children slain countrywide in 2004 -- 73 per cent -- were killed by their parents, and mothers were responsible for as many of the deaths as were fathers.
Among those 27 victims, 13 were killed by their biological mothers, eight by their biological fathers and five by stepfathers, Statistics Canada data show. A
mother and a stepfather were jointly charged in the other death.
University of Toronto criminologist Rosemary Gartner has studied the phenomenon of mothers who kill their children and instantly recognized some of the
circumstances accompanying yesterday's tragedy in Barrie.
"It sounds quite typical," Prof. Gartner said. "The fact that she was a single
mom and that the marriage had apparently broken down, which is a very common thread. Socioeconomic disadvantage is also quite common."
"There may have been a feeling that she couldn't deal with the children and had
no resources," the professor continued, "and if she tried to do harm to herself
that would also fit the pattern.
"But the age of the kids suggests this was not postpartum depression."
If postpartum depression is evident, a mother who kills a child can plead guilty to infanticide, which carries a maximum five-year prison term.
Canada sees about 20 such cases each year.
Where the child is older than two or three months, it is rare for the postpartum defence to succeed.
Woman convicted of killing 3 kids after custody
battle
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, USA, August 26, 2008
HELSINKI, Finland - A court in Finland has convicted a woman of murdering
her three young children and has given her a life sentence.
The Espoo District Court says Thai-born Yu-Hsiu Fu was found guilty of
strangling her 8-year-old twin daughters and 1-year-old son in her home.
She tried to kill herself afterward.
The verdict on Tuesday says the 41-year-old woman was found to be of
sound mind at the time of the murders.
Court papers show the murders were preceded by a bitter custody battle
with her Finnish husband who was living separately from her at the time
of the murders.
A life sentence in Finland mean convicts usually serve at least 11 years
in prison.
ST. STEPHEN, N.B. - A New Brunswick judge says a woman who burned and
dismembered her newborn son is criminally responsible for her actions.
Becky Sue Morrow earlier pleaded guilty to offering an indignity to a
dead body and disposing of a newborn with the intent of concealing a delivery.
Judge David Walker ruled Friday that the 27-year-old woman may have been
suffering from a mental disorder when she delivered the baby but that that
was not the case when the baby's body was burned and its remains hidden.
It is not known if the baby was alive at the time of birth.
At a hearing last month, the court heard contrasting reports from the
two psychiatrists. One said Ms. Morrow was in a "disassociated" mental state
when the crime occurred. The other said she clearly planned her actions
and understood the consequences.
KINGSTON, Ont. (CP) -- An Ontario woman who was sentenced to 16 years
in prison in one of Canada's stiffest penalties for child abuse will be
released on full parole after serving less than half her term.
Lorelei Turner, 38, and her husband Steven were convicted of manslaughter
in July 1995 for beating and starving their three-year-old son John to death
in a case that horrified Canadians who followed the trial.
But on Wednesday, a panel of the National Parole Board in this eastern
Ontario city ruled Turner will be released but placed on probation until
July 2011.
Until then, she must remain within 25 kilometres of her residence, is
not allowed unsupervised contact with anyone under 16, and must continue
to receive counselling.
"The board would have looked at the risk and obviously found a low risk
to reoffend," Carol Sparling of the National Parole Board said Wednesday.
Mainichi Daily News, Sakai, Osaka, Japan, November 26, 2006
SAKAI, Osaka -- A woman accused of cutting off her newborn son's private
parts in 2004 was ordered Monday to spend five years behind bars.
The Sakai branch of the Osaka District Court convicted Shizue Tamura,
27, a resident of Izumi, Osaka Prefecture, of inflicting bodily injury.
"The way she committed the crime was unprecedented, inhumane and
cruel," Presiding Judge Masahiro Hosoi said as he handed down the ruling.
Prosecutors had demanded an eight-year prison term.
Read More ..
This overview paper summarizes recent research on girls who exhibit aggressive
and violent behaviours. It defines relevant terms, outlines factors which may
contribute to girls' aggression and violence, and presents ideas for preventing
these behaviours. A list of resources is also included. 2002, 13p.
KINGSTON, Ont. (CP) -- An Ontario woman who was sentenced to 16 years
in prison in one of Canada's stiffest penalties for child abuse will be
released on full parole after serving less than half her term.
Lorelei Turner, 38, and her husband Steven were convicted of manslaughter
in July 1995 for beating and starving their three-year-old son John to death
in a case that horrified Canadians who followed the trial.
But on Wednesday, a panel of the National Parole Board in this eastern
Ontario city ruled Turner will be released but placed on probation until
July 2011.
Until then, she must remain within 25 kilometres of her residence, is
not allowed unsupervised contact with anyone under 16, and must continue
to receive counselling.
"The board would have looked at the risk and obviously found a low risk
to reoffend," Carol Sparling of the National Parole Board said Wednesday.
A WOMAN who killed her infant son by jumping with him from the eighth
floor of a city apartment block has walked free after being convicted of
manslaughter.
Yeeda Topham, 40, of Roleystone near Perth, had pleaded guilty in the
West Australian Supreme Court to a charge of unlawfully killing
21-month-old James Topham on November 5 last year. Read More ..
LOS ANGELES, USA -- Murder charges are expected to be filed against a
woman whose infant son's body was found in a washing machine after firefighters
doused what they say was an intentionally set fire, authorities said Tuesday.
Latunga Starks, 32, was taken into custody last night, according to the
Sheriff's Department Web site.
Los Angeles Police Department Lt. Dennis Shirey identified the mother
and her nearly 3-month-old son, Michael Kelvin Thompson.
Craig and Kathleen Folbigg's first son died in his sleep at 19 days old. Their next child, Patrick, died two
years later at nine months.
Still, it was after their fourth baby died before Australian police suspected something was terribly wrong.
In Sydney's New South Wales State Supreme Court this week, Kathleen Folbigg, 35, was found guilty of killing
all four of her babies.
The jury's work would have been made much easier if they had been allowed to read Folbigg's entire secret
diary. In it, she practically confesses to following in her dad's deadly footsteps.
"Obviously I am my father's daughter," the Australian woman wrote in her diary Oct. 14, 1996, having already
killed three of her four children.
"But I think losing my temper and being frustrated and everything has passed. I now just let things happen
and go with the flow. An attitude I should of had with all my children, if given the chance, I'll have it
with the next one."
Folbigg was pregnant at the time with her fourth child. She would go on to kill her as well.
