Children drugged and suffocated? Mother remains silent in court

Process - Children drugged and suffocated? Mother remains silent in court

Following the alleged murder of her two children, a 44-year-old woman has been on trial at Mannheim District Court since today. The mother is alleged to have first sedated her seven and nine-year-old sons with medication on Holy Saturday in Hockenheim near Heidelberg and then suffocated them.

The accused did not make any statements at the start of the trial. The central question of whether she was of diminished capacity at the time of the crime remains unanswered. The father of their children gave an insight into the family's life.

Public prosecutor: insidious murder

The public prosecutor's office accuses the woman of insidious murder in both cases. According to the information provided, the German woman had developed a personality disorder as a result of brain damage. She was convinced that the father was abusing the two children and felt that they were in serious danger from her ex-husband. She saw killing them as a way out.

Since 2020, the children had mostly lived with their father, from whom their mother was separated. They were supposed to spend the Easter vacations with the woman.

She is said to have sedated the boys with various medications on Holy Saturday. According to the public prosecutor, she then suffocated her children and inflicted wounds on their heads. According to the indictment, she wrote an email to the police in which she confessed to a "terrible" crime. She then tried to kill herself.

The ex-husband gave a detailed account of the marriage and the turbulent time afterwards. There had been frequent arguments during the relationship and the woman had become violent towards him on several occasions. For the now 56-year-old, who is involved in the trial as a co-plaintiff, the situation had become increasingly worse and was almost unbearable towards the end.

Family court involved

In 2018, the couple separated and filed for divorce. The children spent the weekends with their mother, which she did not accept. After one visit, she no longer gave the children up. According to the man, he had no contact with his sons for eight months. He had involved the family court and ultimately obtained the right of residence.

He was aware of his ex-wife's accusations that he was a danger to the sons. The father firmly rejected them. He had never become violent towards the children.

On the witness stand, a forensic technician and three police officers, who had rushed to the defendant's address on Easter Sunday after receiving the e-mail at the police station, also described the incident. They described how they found the woman in the apartment with a gun, which later turned out to be a blank-firing pistol. The defendant had threatened the police officers several times and had also turned the gun on herself. Several police officers arrested the woman. The emergency doctor and police subsequently found the two boys dead in their cribs.

The court is planning five further hearings until January 8.