Mother accused of cutting five-year-old’s throat ‘thought the girl was evil’

Melissa Towne, 37, who is charged with capital murder (Harris County Sheriff’s Office/AP )

A mother accused of killing her five-year-old daughter near a park because she thought the girl was “evil” has a history of mental illness, her lawyer said.

Melissa Towne, 37, was charged with murder after her daughter Nichole’s death and is being held on a 15 million dollar (£13.3 million) bond.