A psychiatric assessment has been ordered mid-trial for a Calgary mother who testified about demons' involvement in her severely disabled daughter's death.

After Patricia Couture was finished her testimony — which included citing scripture and speaking confidently about demons — provincial court Judge John Bascom ordered a 60-day assessment after noting concerns about "possible delusions."

Couture testified in her own defence Friday while being tried on a charge of criminal negligence causing death. Her daughter Melissa, 38, was found dead in her home in April weighing just 51 pounds and suffering from bedsores so deep that bone was exposed. An autopsy found she died from choking.

Couture said she prayed in an effort to protect Melissa from evil.

"I bind them in the name of Jesus," Patricia Couture told provincial court in Calgary.

Patricia Couture leaves court after the judge ordered a psychiatric assessment mid-trial over concerns of "possible delusions." (Meghan Grant/CBC)

Melissa Couture had severe developmental disabilities, functioning at the cognitive level of a three- or four-year-old, as well as cerebral palsy, hearing loss, visual impairment and body stiffness, according to the agreed statement of facts.

Couture began her testimony Friday with a description of her daughter's condition and impairments. She teared up when telling the judge that she loved and cherished her daughter.

Then she described her belief in demonic forces — or as she called them, "strongholds" — and spirits that she said would cause her daughter to scream and cry.

"The spirit realm is as alive as the physical realm," she said. "There was a spiritual umbilical cord."

"I had to sever the umbilical cord between Melissa and myself but then I started to realize there was also … a connection in the neighbourhood."

'Frequencies' may have caused bedsores: Couture

When defence lawyer Andre Ouellette asked her about her daughter's weight loss, she testified she thought her daughter weighed about 80 pounds.

She also acknowledged her daughter's bedsores but said she didn't realize how bad they were until she saw the autopsy photos.

"I know and feel that a lot of the stuff that was coming from these frequencies could have been the major cause of the bedsores," she said.

Her daughter's last interaction with doctors was during a 2012 hospital visit, during which it was noted she'd lost 15 pounds, was having trouble eating and had begun aspirating her food. An earlier witness called that hospitalization a "turning point" for her health.

Patricia Couture said her daughter got agitated when visiting doctors and dentists.

Journals detail deterioration

Chief Crown prosecutor Sue Kendall cross-examined Couture about journals she kept that detailed Melissa's injuries and weight loss, as well as her concerns about being an "unfit mother."

In the entries, Couture appears to theorize about Melissa's deterioration; she writes about flesh eating disease, her "raw bum" and the fact that Melissa's legs and arms were emaciated.

She wrote about herself in the third person: "The doctor will take Pat to task about being an unfit mother," she wrote.

An excerpt from one of Patricia Couture's journals discusses Melissa losing weight and having a raw bum. (Court exhibit)

Couture said in court she was not detailing injuries she observed on her daughter, rather she was recording the evil that was being directed at Melissa by outside forces.

"You knew Melissa was deteriorating so badly she might die," suggested Kendall.

"No, I wrote that because I was working to prevent what might be put on her," said Couture.

Kendall suggested Couture refused to take her daughter to a doctor because she knew Melissa would be sent to live elsewhere and the financial support from the government and her ex-husband would cease.

Ex-husband testified to Couture's belief in demons

On Thursday, Patricia Couture's ex-husband, Bryan Couture testified that she believed the putrid smell coming from their daughter's rotting body in the month leading to her death was from demons hiding in the walls.

He testified that he saw his daughter just four days before her death and had noticed her decline.

However, he said when he confronted his wife suggesting their daughter needed to see a doctor, he was told she would "get back to [him] on that."

He said even though he'd been concerned about his former wife's mental health for years, he trusted their daughter in her care because his ex-wife loved, protected and devoted her life to the girl.

Two of Patricia Couture's former friends also testified Thursday, telling the story of a caring mother whose ability to care for her daughter amazed them.

Closing arguments have been delayed for now. The matter will be back in court on Nov. 6 to determine the results of the psychiatric assessment.