Cologne (dpa / lnw) - A 31-year-old woman has been in front of the Cologne district court since Friday for the manslaughter of her four-month-old daughter. She is said to have suffocated her baby in Kerpen (Rhein-Erft district) last August.
According to the indictment, the German, who was living in a women's shelter at the time of the crime, "pressed a pillow on the baby's face and suffocated it with the intention of killing him" in her room. The accused is said to have then placed the body in the stroller and taken it to a nearby lake in a former opencast mining area. There the woman is said to have tried to take her own life. Walkers found her injured on a dirt road and alerted the police.
In the opinion of the public prosecutor's office, the accused had only reduced criminal responsibility when committing the crime.
On the first day of the hearing, the defense attorney stated that his client wanted to comment on the allegations. However, he requested that the public be excluded, since the accused's testimony should address "interests worthy of protection" such as living with her violent partner and details of her state of health. The court granted the request.
The process is scheduled for three more days of negotiations until March 21st.
