The Central Criminal Court has heard that a mother accused of murdering her three children told a psychiatrist afterwards that she wished she had a time machine.
Deirdre Morley, of Parson’s Court, Newcastle, Co Dublin, has pleaded NOT guilty to murdering Darragh, Conor and Carla McGinley by reason of insanity.
The court heard distressing evidence yesterday of how Deirdre Morley, a 44 year old nurse, suffocated her three children at the family home on January 24th last year.
Today, Dr Brenda Wright, a forensic psychiatrist, told the jury that Ms Morley had a history of depression, which she said became psychotic as time went on.
By late 2019, she said she had developed delusional beliefs that her mental illness was damaging her children.
She said those thoughts manifested to the point where she believed killing them urgently was absolutely necessary, and she couldn’t identity an alternative solution.
Dr Wright was also of the view that she wouldn’t have been able to stop herself.
She was also satisfied that she met the criteria for the special verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity.
Reporting by Frank Greaney
