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During that pregnancy, her parents knew about her relationship. But they did not know about the second pregnancy, nor did they know Leung and Lin had married in secret.

Lin, again eager to have a child, encouraged Leung to seek prenatal medical care.

In March 2010, she again experienced pain early one morning, and for the second time delivered the baby into a toilet. She wrapped the baby in plastic and disposed of the bag in a garbage bin. The body was never found.

Leung was arrested later that month.

She was initially charged with two counts of second-degree murder, but a jury convicted her of the lesser charge of infanticide.

The judge noted the conviction means the jury believed that while Leung intended to kill the infants, her mind was disturbed when she did so. The Criminal Code says the infanticide defence is open to a woman who “is not fully recovered from the effects of giving birth to the child.”

Infanticide is a rare and poorly understood phenomenon one that is “apparently not a concept known to psychiatry,” Humphries noted.

The Crown already filed an appeal of the verdict, arguing errors during the trial led the jury to acquit Leung of second-degree murder.

The maximum sentence for infanticide is five years, compared with life for murder. Because the sentences for two counts were imposed consecutively, the maximum sentence Leung could have faced was 10 years.

The Crown argued for an eight-year sentence, while the defence asked for three years.

Humphries sentenced Leung to 18 months for the first baby’s death and 42 months for the second. After credit for time in pre-trial custody, the total sentence is just under five years.

Outside court, Leung’s lawyer said he had confidence in the judge’s ruling, though he declined to say whether he was considering an appeal.