Two years in prison for mother who killed her child.

After two instances of returning the case for further investigation to clarify whether the mother intentionally killed her child or unintentionally caused the child's death out of fear of discovering her infidelity, the court has now sentenced the defendant for unintentional manslaughter.

The defendant kept his head down on the table the entire time waiting for the trial to begin. Photo: Uyen Trinh

On the afternoon of December 14th, the Juvenile and Family Court (Ho Chi Minh City People's Court) sentenced defendant Huynh Thi Kim Phuong (38 years old, residing in Binh Tan District, Ho Chi Minh City) to 2 years in prison for the crime of unintentionally causing death.

Previously, the court had opened two hearings but both times returned the case file for further investigation to determine the defendant's subjective intent when committing the crime.

According to records, Phuong and Mr. Nguyen Trang married in 2000 and had two children together - a son and a daughter. While selling fabric at Tan Binh Market (Ho Chi Minh City), Phuong had an affair with a man selling fabric at the neighboring stall and gave birth to a baby girl.

Due to his suspicions, in early 2016, Mr. Trang secretly took the girl to the hospital for a DNA test, and the results showed that he was not the child's father.

On the night of February 9, 2016, Mr. Trang called his wife into the room to question her about the incident, but Phuong avoided the question. He then hit Phuong in the face and closed the door, preventing her from leaving. In the middle of the night, Mr. Trang opened the door and let Phuong go downstairs to sleep with their young child.

The next morning, when Mr. Trang entered the room, he found the baby turning blue and not breathing, while Phuong was bleeding from her left wrist.

The forensic examination concluded that the muscles and cartilage in the neck region were compressed, similar to the image of strangulation. Acute pulmonary edema was observed, with evidence of hemorrhage in the neck muscles and scattered hemorrhages in the subchondral muscle tissue. The mucous membranes of the thyroid and tracheal cartilages were severely congested.

Accordingly, on February 18, 2016, Phuong was charged with murder. In early 2017, the investigating agency changed the charge to involuntary manslaughter, and the Ho Chi Minh City People's Procuracy issued an indictment prosecuting Phuong for this crime.

In previous court hearings, Phuong testified that she had unintentionally placed the bracelet around her child's neck, unaware that it had caused the child's death, and only realized it around 7 a.m., at which point she cut her wrists in an attempt to commit suicide...

However, the panel of judges argued that the investigation's conclusion that the defendant's hand, adorned with jewelry, came into contact with the child's neck, obstructing the airway and causing death, was inconsistent with the defendant's self-declaration, statements to the investigating agency, and testimony at the trial.

The forensic expert's explanation at the trial indicated that the entire simen bracelet was on the forearm, not in contact with the neck area; if the bracelet had been used, there would have been traces left on the corpse...

The defendant's actions were intentional; they foresaw the consequences but allowed them to occur, accepting the consequences as they happened.

However, in this afternoon's court session, the panel of judges concluded, based on the expert's explanation, that there was insufficient basis to determine the exact amount of force the defendant used to impact the child's neck.

When the defendant pressed down on the child's neck, did the child have a reflex, and if so, what kind of reflex? If there was a reflex, the defendant could have recognized it. However, in children and the elderly, if there is a reflex, it is very weak or absent.

For the reasons stated above, there is insufficient basis to conclude that the defendant had a subjective intent to kill his child.

To ensure the principle of presumption of innocence and based on the regulations on the limits of trial, the Panel of Judges accepted the prosecutor's decision to prosecute the defendant for the crime of unintentional manslaughter, and sentenced the defendant to 2 years in prison.

According to Tuoi Tre