A New Jersey mom who drowned her two younger daughters final 12 months for what she described as “religious purposes” tied to a cleaning of the world was discovered not responsible by motive of madness final week.
Naomi Elkins, 27, was charged with murdering her daughters, ages 1 and three, after she drowned them in a tub at their residence in Lakewood, New Jersey on June 25.
Superior Courtroom Choose Man Ryan dominated that whereas Elkins did kill her daughters, she was not responsible by motive of madness. He ordered the deranged mom to serve two lifetime sentences — 150 years whole below New Jersey regulation — in a safe psychiatric hospital, the Ashbury Park Press reported.
Elkins beforehand admitted to the murders — telling police she “counted to 50 multiple times to ensure she held them underwater for enough time” — and claimed she did it for “religious purposes,” a legal criticism mentioned.
She was “undoubtedly psychotic” and believed that both she or her husband was the Messiah incarnate, psychologist Gianni Pirelli testified in courtroom, in response to the native New Jersey outlet.
“She thought that if she destroyed her children, she would be destroying all the evil in the world,” Pirelli mentioned.
Alternatively, Elkins additionally expressed beliefs that she was “a descendant of Hitler or evil entities,” he famous. He mentioned a lot of her psychological well being points have been tied to the postpartum psychosis she suffered after having her two kids.
Final June, the sick mother picked up her kids from a Giggles Daycare, the place she additionally labored, and stabbed her youngest within the abdomen earlier than drowning her within the bathtub, prosecutors mentioned. Her 3-year-old began screaming when she noticed what was occurring and ran to the second lavatory to cover.
Elkins chased her and began a second bathtub in that loo. She drowned the younger woman, then known as Hatzolah Medical Providers, saying that she damage her kids, in response to police and prosecutors.
Each kids have been pronounced useless on the scene.
A letter police had Elkins write addressed to her kids learn “more as a letter to God,” Pirelli mentioned.
Within the letter, she straight talked about killing her kids. It was collected as proof.
Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer didn’t dispute Elkins’ decided madness.
Elkins’ psychological well being will probably be evaluated periodically by the courtroom. She’s going to keep in a psychiatric establishment for the remainder of her life until she, sooner or later, is now not thought of a hazard to herself or others, protection lawyer Mitchell Ansell mentioned.
