WOMAN FACES MURDER CHARGE

Northern Advocate, 4 February 1936, Page 10

WOMAN FACES MURDER CHARGE

POISONING ALLEGATION LAID

DUNEDIN, Monday,

The trial of Cecily Fitzmaurice, a married woman, of Oamaru, on a charge of murdering her infant child was commenced in the Supreme Court this morTTTng before Mr Justice Kennedy.

The Crown Prosecutor, Mr F. B. Adams, conducted the case for the prosecution and Mr J. E. Farrell, of Oamaru, appeared for the accused, who pleaded not guilty. Mr Adams, in opening the case, said accused lived at Oamaru with her three children. Her husband was engaged on public works and was working at Kartigi at TTie time of fli’e occurrence. On September Bhe returned to Kartigi after spending the week-end with his wife and family.

Prepared Drinks,

On the Tuesday, said Mr Adams, the two elder children went to school and came home at the usual hour. They called at a neighbour’s place to play, and appeared to be in their normal health, as they had also appeared to be at school.

The mother put the children to bed comparatively early, and proceeded to prepare poisonous drinks to administer to them. Mr Adams continued. She had a small bottle of veronal tablets, which she crushed with a rolling pin and mixed with milk.

She removed the traces of the poison by burning the newspaper on which she crushed it and by washing the cups, but some weeks later traces of poison were found on the rolling pin.

Apart from the evidence on the rolling pin there was no trace left that would tell the tale.

During the course of Tuesday night the baby died. Not until Thursday was the attention of neighbours drawn to the house, it being noticed that the place was locked up and that milk left on Wednesday morning had not been used.

Neighbours Break In,

The neighbours broke in by one of the windows, and found the woman in bed with the two living children and with the dead baby. The mother and two children were seriously ill and were removed to the hospital for treatment, after which they recovered. Counsel proceeded to read statements made by accused to the police. In the first of these she made no admission of the use of poison, but in a later statement she admitted having done so. She said she expected that she and her three children would die in their sleep. She had never told anyone she intended to take the children’s lives and her own. She said she was fond of her children, but felt unable to look after them on account of her nerves.

The Likely Defence,

| The defence in the case, said Mr Adams, was likely to turn upon the mental condition of accused, whether she was legally sane or insane at the time of the committal of the crime, counsel quoted the legal definition of insanity, and said the question at issue seemed o be whether accused was to be regarded as criminally responsible for her act and liable to the punishment of death, or whether her mental condition was such at the time that she did not know she was doing wrong.

Evidence was called, and the case, which is expected to engage the attention of the Court for two days, was adjourned.