Czech court upholds 18-year sentence for mother in child murder case

The Prague High Court has upheld an 18-year prison sentence for a woman convicted of murdering her mentally disabled daughter in Kolín last October. Both the defense, which sought a lighter sentence of approximately 14 years, and the prosecution, which requested a harsher penalty, appealed the original ruling.

The court found that the woman stabbed her daughter 96 times with a kitchen knife while the child was in bed. The victim attempted to defend herself, sustaining defensive wounds to her hands, before dying from massive bleeding and injuries to her internal organs and respiratory tract.

The defendant claimed she acted out of extreme frustration and despair following news from the child's school regarding her need for specialized care. She testified that she had swallowed a large quantity of medication with the intent to die and decided her daughter should die with her to avoid the burden of future care. However, prosecutors and experts noted that the woman did not suffer from a mental disorder at the time of the crime and characterized her statements as attempts to evade full responsibility.