Mom who drowned daughter released from jail after being deemed sane
A California woman who was found to be insane when she admitted to drowning her 3-year-old daughter in a bathtub in January 2010 has been released from jail after being deemed sane.
The Modesto Bee reports that Jennifer Lynn Bigham, 26, was ordered released from custody Tuesday after doctors said she no longer exhibits the symptoms of mental illness that caused her to drown her daughter.
At Tuesday's hearing, Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Thomas Zeff said he is legally required to order Bigham's release if she has fully regained her sanity, according to the report.
The court previously ruled that Bigham was not guilty based on reports from doctors who determined she suffered from "severe mental illness" at the time of the drowning at her Patterson, California home.
Elaine Casillas, a deputy district attorney in Stanislaus County, told The Modesto Bee after the hearing that the court's standard in determining Bigham's metal health status was not stringent enough.
"She's a danger to society," Casillas said. "She's not been evaluated properly."
Casillas told the judge the district attorney's office in Stanislaus County plans to file an appeal, but that did not prevent Bigham from walking free Tuesday, according to The Modesto Bee.
After the judge made his ruling, Bigham's defense attorney reportedly said the judge "made the only ruling required legally based on the findings from medical experts," the report states.
8 comments:
The jail makes sure she gets/takes her meds. BUT when she is out will she take them? Most mentally ill do not believe they are and will not take the necessary meds.
The medical experts have declared her cured?
Lots of people know that this woman is a danger to children, so she is free to do "her thing" again.
I pity her next baby, who will reap the rewards of this "cured" child killer and the medical experts who gave their blessing.
This is an outrage. A whole 2 years and she is cured? If that is so, then she wasn't really mentally ill at the time she drowned her 3 yr old daughter and she should be retried! I know that's not possible but it is how I feel. As with Casey Anthony, the defense shouldn't be allowed to lie to the court to mislead with phony defenses i.e. Caylee drowned in the pool
Now this 26 yr old can go back out and have another baby and repeat the same action. So wrong.
Personally i believe if someone commits murder and claims insanity, wins and is sent to a hospital then as soon as they are declared sane they must then be sent to a jail to serve whatever sentence they would have gotten with a guilty verdict.
The problem is insanity isn't curable it is manageable.
As long as the subject keeps taking the medication as prescribed, follows all the rules in relation to visits ,appointments etc all is well.
The subject after a while believes themselves cured and stops taking the pills, sick people need people and they aren't sick they are cured.
Those around them notice the changes in personality and do their best to get the subject to take the pills again even to the extent of calling in professionals and even getting them commited.
All too ofen though nobody notices or is unable to get the subject the help they need, the subject then goes out and commits horrendous crimes often on passersby who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Cue handwringing and reviews and this will never happen again reports except it will.
They closed the institutions to save money and trusted to care in the community and obedient patients and now almost weekly we read of another murder at the hand of a psychotic patient.
When they commit such heinous crimes mental hosptital till they die or on declared sane straight to jail do not pass go. They simply cannot not be trusted and if all else fails will use sundry human rights laws, privacy laws and anything a damn good lawyer can think of to get out and not be monitored or forced to medicate.
The rights and safety of the population must come before the right to not take prescribed medication to control a serious mental disorder.
This is a good illustration the power that is held by unnamed "medical experts." They are not part of an open trial in a court of law, they are not accountable for their decisions, they are not elected by the people, yet they hold this power in their hands.
I totally agree with Hobnob.
joan+22+1
I know there are laws but regardless, it doesn't change what she did. If she killed a human then she needs to be jailed for life. A normal person would not murder another person.So of course she was not sane at the time of the murder. I think there are too many classifications of behavior.
I have the same question for the doctors and the judge that Joy Behar asked Dorothy Clay Sims. Would you let Jennifer Bigham babysit your children? Would they have set her free if that had been part of her release agreement?
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