Mother guilty of attempting to murder baby son

A 27-year-old woman was found guilty of attempting to murder her
three-month-old son at Edinburgh high court.

The woman, from Glasgow, went to Yorkhill Hospital several times
complaining that the baby took “strange turns and turned blue in
the face”.

Professor John Stephenson of Yorkhill gave evidence that the
episodes only happened while the mother was present and ceased
entirely when the child was cared for by foster parents.

He said that controlled observation revealed that the mother was
smothering the child and on nine separate occasions took the child
to the point of death.

The jury found the woman, who cannot be named for legal reasons,
guilty of attempted murder by unanimous verdict. Sentencing has
been deferred for background reports.