48 -year old woman detained under Mental Health Act
The Old Bailey has been hearing how a mother carried out an horrific knife attack on her daughter in St Margaret's Field in W7 as the 11-year-old cried out 'I love you' and pleaded for her to stop.
The woman who cannot be identified for legal reasons plunged a large knife into the child 10 times - at one point hugging her before continuing her attack.
The child, received multiple cut wounds to her hands and arms. After she collapsed the 48-year-old woman turned the knife on herself, causing stab wounds to her stomach.
The girl was saved by a 10-hour operation to repair wounds to her abdominal organs but has been left with long-lasting injuries and scarring.
The woman, a nursery worker pleaded guilty to attempted murder in August last year, and was detained under the Mental Health Act without limit of time.
The court heard she had been a loving mother until a few months before the attack, when she became gripped by severe depression.
She was prescribed medication but had not been taking it for two weeks before the attack. The day before, she had been told that her care would be transferred back to her GP.
Bobbie Cheema, prosecuting, said the mother had bought the sharp knife two weeks before and produced it after the couple set off for the shops. She had intended to kill herself and decided her daughter 'would be better off dead' than being left without her.
The couple were spotted after the girl picked up the knife and tried to stagger away with her mother attempting to catch her.David Hislop, QC, defending, said: 'She was an exceptionally good mother and wife.
'She was the very foundation and heart of her family. She did nothing to bring on this mental disorder which has wrecked her life.'
Judge Stephen Kramer said: 'This is a tragic case for everyone involved.'
15th July 2011