By Benjamin Pulta
MANILA – The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday said it has reversed the conviction of a mother with schizophrenia found liable by the lower court for the death of her daughter, with the tribunal ordering her treatment in a psychiatric facility.
In a statement, the SC said the mother’s mental state deprived her of the capacity to recognize the wrongfulness of her act and thus exempted her from criminal liability.
In a decision written by Associate Justice Samuel Gaerlan, the SC’s third division granted the mother’s appeal and overturned her parricide conviction on the ground of legal insanity due to schizophrenia.
The mother jumped off a bridge into a river with her five-year-old daughter. While a man aboard a styrofoam banca was able to save the mother, he was unable to locate the child, whose lifeless body was found the next day.
The mother claimed she was not in her right mind at the time. She could only remember walking with her daughter and had no memory of the incident itself. She said she only regained consciousness while floating in the water.
A licensed physician from the National Center for Mental Health (NCMH) testified that the mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
The Regional Trial Court (RTC) convicted the mother and sentenced her to reclusion perpetua or up to 40 years in prison. It was found that she intended to harm her daughter when she jumped off the bridge while embracing her. The Court of Appeals affirmed the RTC’s decision.
The SC, however, disagreed and ruled that the mother was not criminally liable because her mental condition during the incident prevented her from understanding the nature and wrongfulness of her actions.
The high tribunal ordered the mother’s immediate transfer from the Correctional Institution for Women to the NCMH for her treatment.
She will be released only upon the order of the RTC based on a recommendation from her attending physician at the hospital. (PNA)
