Mother charged with failing to provide for girl whose body was found on Gold Coast beach

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

The mother of a baby girl whose body washed up on a Gold Coast beach after drowning in the Tweed River has briefly faced court.

The woman, who cannot be identified, is charged with failing to provide her daughter with the necessities of life. The baby’s father, 47, was charged on 22 November with murdering his daughter.

In court, the woman sat impassively as her case was adjourned for mention on 1 April in Tweed local court.

The 23-year-old has been in a mental health facility since she was granted bail in December, and has a history of mental illness, court documents reveal.

The documents refer to diary entries made by the mother where she wrote that her daughter was “evil” and an “abomination”.

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The mother of two was allegedly heavily influenced by religion and believed she was Mary, the mother of Jesus.

Her family has been supporting her, and waited outside the courtroom as her case was mentioned.

The woman’s defence team said the prosecution’s brief of evidence was more than 3,500 pages and asked for a lengthy adjournment.

Her bail was continued on the provision she return to the mental health facility.

His matter was due to be mentioned in the same court on Monday.

It was alleged the infant was thrown into the water at Tweed Heads in NSW, where she drowned, before her body drifted north for about 30km.

The couple’s second child, a two-year-old boy, remains in foster care.