A mother has been convicted of infanticide in only nine cases since 1992.

A mother who admits killing her child may not be convicted of murder. Katie Kenny explains the rare charge of infanticide, as part of the Faces of Innocents series.

The baby's cries only became louder as her mother grabbed her, banged her head against a couch, choked her, then threw her on a bed.

Finally, the 1-year-old was quiet. She had stopped breathing.

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Appearing at the High Court in Dunedin in 2008, the mother, who has permanent name suppression, was sentenced to two years' supervision and 100 hours' community work.

Justice Graham Panckhurst said at the time: "Child abuse is an issue which is at the forefront of the community's mind...

"But yet in your case the charge is one of infanticide and some will perceive your treatment by the Court as sympathetic and inconsistent with that in other cases.

"The question may be asked, well, how can this be?"

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WHAT IS INFANTICIDE?

"Culpable homicide" refers to a death where the killer is liable for murder, manslaughter, or infanticide.

Infanticide is a charge available to women who can show their minds have been temporarily "disturbed" by the stress of childbirth or breastfeeding. The maximum penalty is three years' imprisonment.



Justice Graham Panckhurst handed down a sentence of two years supervision to a Dunedin mother-of-five who hit and smothered her daughter for crying incessantly, which caused the girl to choke to death on regurgitated food.

Usually these sentences are non-custodial; such as community service, supervision, or mental health treatment.

The legal definition of infanticide varies among countries. In England, Australia, and Canada, infanticide applies in cases where the child was younger than one year old. In New Zealand the charge can apply in cases where the child was up to 10 years old.

IS IT A LESSER PENALTY?

Some argue babies have a lower status in society and this is reflected in infanticide's lesser penalties.

Otago University law professor Kevin Dawkins said the charge of infanticide is "kind of an historic relic" inherited from English common law, and is available in fewer than 5 per cent of all international jurisdictions.

He would like to see infanticide replaced with another partial defence of diminished responsibility, to apply to female and male offenders.

Waikato University senior lecturer of law Brenda Midson said infanticide involved a lower level of "moral blameworthiness".

It's now thought child homicide is correlated with socio-cultural factors or personality disorders rather than hormonal imbalances, Midson said.

She also would like to see a revision of homicide laws to take into account the personal circumstances of the alleged offender, rather than trying to "squeeze each case into fairly rigid classifications".

"In every case I think the question ought to be was the alleged offender in a position to foresee the consequences of their actions."

Sentences in infanticide cases may be seen as being more lenient because they recognise the risk of reoffending is low, she said.

Perhaps the reason infanticide is so out of date is because it's rarely used.

Since 1992, there have been more than 200 child homicide cases in New Zealand. In 55 cases, a mother was found to be the perpetrator. In nine cases, a mother was convicted of infanticide.



Daniel John Marshall, 1, was drowned in the bathtub by his mother, Evelyn Kay Marshall.

'THEY WERE MOTHERS WHO CARED...'

In 2000, psychiatrist and clinical director of Child and Family Unit at Starship children's hospital in Auckland, Josephine Stanton, interviewed six mentally ill women who killed their children.

Some of the women described "delusionally based mercy killing" – killing to protect or rescue the children from some imagined doom, Stanton recalled.

"In a sense the killing was because the child mattered so much to them."

All of the women "bitterly regretted" their actions.

Although post-natal depression has become better recognised, owing to stigma many mothers don't seek help, she said.

"All the women I talked to had very treatable mental illness."

'YOU LOST CONTROL'

The Dunedin woman was a solo mother of five young children when she killed her baby.

Like most mothers found guilty of infanticide, she dobbed herself in.

Psychiatric reports found she suffered "a major depressive illness" and it was clear "the balance of her mind was disturbed" following her latest pregnancy.

"[The baby] was crying incessantly," Justice Panckhurst said. "You lost control."

He said the mother posed no risk to other children.

INFANTICIDE CASES

2010: A Christchurch mother suffocated her newborn daughter and kept her body in a wardrobe for six weeks. The mother was sentenced to two years' supervision and treatment at Hillmorton Hospital.

2008: A Dunedin mother-of-five hit and smothered her daughter for crying incessantly, leading to her choking to death on regurgitated food. Autopsy results indicated "non-accidental" injuries. The mother was sentenced to two years' supervision and 100 hours' community work.

2007: A Wellington mother concealed her pregnancy and then smothered her newborn with a pillow. She was sentenced to two years' supervision and psychiatric treatment.

2006: Patricia Golovale-Siaosi in Dunedin pleaded guilty to a charge of infanticide after she gave birth in a toilet. She let the baby drown before throwing it out the window. She was sentenced to one year's supervision and 130 hours' community work and ordered to undertake a psychiatric assessment and counselling.

2002: Ngatuaine Vaevae, 2, died of head injuries inflicted by her mother Terangi Metuatini. Metuatini was sentenced to two years' supervision.

2001: Evelyn Kay Marshall drowned her son Daniel John Marshall, 1, in the bath at their home in Stratford. She was found to have been suffering from post-natal depression and was sentenced to two years' supervision.

1997: Sharon Moke repeatedly beat her son Anaru Rogers, 1, until he died. The Wellington woman was sentenced to two years' supervision.

1994: A Wellington mother told police she lost her temper with her son, aged 1, and struck him several times. She was sentenced to two years' supervision.

1994: In an episode of post-natal psychosis, a Hawke's Bay mother threw her baby from the first-floor bedroom. The 10-day-old was found to have died from head injuries. The woman was sentenced to 18 months' supervision.