Manslaughter accused told gardaí she held her newborn for 10 minutes before putting her in bin

Woman said she did not believe her baby was breathing and was in 'denial'

Details of the post mortem were read out to the woman which showed the cause of death as being inattention at birth. She agreed that it was fair to say that if she screamed for help the baby would be here today. 

A young woman, charged with her baby’s manslaughter, said during a Garda interview she held the infant in her arms for about 10 minutes after birth before pressing the foot pedal and placing her in the bin.

The woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in 2018 and a charge of child neglect on the same date at Caredoc on the Cork Road, Waterford City.

In August 2018, the woman was arrested and detained at Waterford Garda Station for interview by Inspector Donal Donohoe and Detective Garda Siobhan Keating.

During the first interview, both statements made in the hospital were read over to the woman. 

The woman agreed that when the baby was born and dropped into the toilet she was still attached to her. The defendant accepted she picked the baby up, held her in her left hand, saw her face and determined the sex of the baby. 

When asked if the baby squealed or cried, she said “nothing”. There was a bit of blood in the baby’s mouth and she turned her over to get it out, she explained. However, she repeated the baby wasn’t alive. It was put to her that the baby did breathe, and she said she didn’t hear her.

When she held the baby in her arms the woman couldn’t describe her feelings. She held her for about 10 minutes to “see if there was anything, but, no, there was nothing”. She wanted to bring her home, but panicked when she couldn’t hear her breathe.

Asked why she didn’t seek help, she said, “because I didn’t want it. I never needed help. I always done everything by myself.” 

She considered walking out of the toilet with her and saying something, but didn’t. After a certain point in the pregnancy, she said there was no more movement and therefore thought it was too late. 

When asked what triggered her to put the baby in the bin, she said, “I honestly don’t know.” She described how she opened the lid of the bin and placed her in. She didn’t wrap her. 

After I had cleaned myself up the baby was in my arms. I pressed the foot pedal and placed her in the bin.

The woman agreed she had support and the baby would have had a home, but didn’t know why she denied the pregnancy and made efforts to conceal it. 

Post mortem

Details of the post mortem were read out to her which showed the cause of death as being inattention at birth. She agreed that it was fair to say that if she screamed for help the baby would be here today. 

Asked why she didn’t say anything at the hospital or when the gardaí became involved, she said: “I just didn’t want to believe that I had her.” 

When asked what she would have done differently, the woman said she would have told someone about being pregnant and asked for help. Her actions, she said, were “stupid”.  "I was acting like a child," she said.

During a second interview that evening, she repeated she didn’t know the baby was alive when she gave birth. Gardaí put it to her she denied the pregnancy for nine months beforehand and nine hours afterwards, even when the baby was found in the bin. They accused her of lying, but she protested she was telling the truth and was in denial:

If I knew she was alive I would have called someone. 

When asked what she was thinking when holding her, she said, “How beautiful she was. I was looking for movement. I wanted her to cry… I wanted help, but I didn’t ask.” 

She felt relieved she had her and was a mam. She felt she had left her baby down completely and was selfish.

Ciaran O’Loughlin, SC for the defence, pointed out to Inspector Donohoe that comments made by the defendant were in hindsight and didn’t quantify that she knew the baby was alive on the date in question.

Father of baby's evidence

Giving evidence, the father of the baby said he was made aware of the woman’s potential pregnancy, when she told him about it. He disputed it at that stage due to a lack of information. 

Under cross examination, he agreed that he offered her money for a pregnancy test and a doctor’s appointment when she told him of the pregnancy. When asked where he was in the run up to the delivery, he said he was “going about my own business with my friends and stuff”. 

It was put to him he had not had much contact with the woman, and Mr O’Loughlin, SC, added at that stage it was obvious to everyone, except the woman, that she was pregnant.

When it was put to him he didn’t want to think it was his problem, the witness said that wasn’t the reality of the situation, adding he would have taken care of the child. He said he did what was in his “rights and capabilities to do”.

On behalf of the defence, the final witness of the day, Dr Catherine Conlon, assistant professor of social Policy at Trinity College Dublin, explained the premise of a concealed pregnancy and drew on the Ann Lovett case of 1984.

The case is to continue on Friday.