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.
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- The public prosecutor's office in Mannheim is leading the processes against the mother, accused of committing a double murder in Heidelberg.
- The mother's sons, aged 7 and 9, were drugged and suffocated in their cribs during Easter vacations at their mother's squat in Hockenberg.
- The woman's ex-husband, now 56, shares his concerns about criminality in relation to his sons and the escalating events leading up to the tragic incident in Baden-Württemberg.
- The mother's former actions of threatening police officers with a blank-firing pistol and a history of violent outbursts have added complexity to the investigation by the local police.
- The public prosecutor maintains that the woman had developed a personality disorder, and her criminal tendencies were triggered by allegations of her ex-husband's harmful influence towards her children.
- The court proceedings in Mannheim are expected to continue until January 8, as more witnesses and evidence are brought forth to ascertain the defendant's state of mind at the time of the alleged murders.
- Despite severe restrictions due to snow chaos in Bavaria and the broader effects of climate events on Germany's infrastructure, the trial is determined to continue its course to administrate justice and protect the rights of the children living in Heidelberg and Mannheim.
Source: www.stern.de
