Ambitious Prosecutor's Convictions Are Overturned
by TChris
Christine Wilhelm drowned her son in a bathtub, and tried to drown her other son. Common sense might cause one to wonder whether this behavior was the product of mental illness, but it was only after Wilhelm's convictions were reversed last week (decision in pdf here) that the prosecutor, Patricia DeAngelis, said that she is "considering the possibility of giving a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity." What took so long?
Wilhelm has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic but DeAngelis had pressed for a 50 year to life prison sentence and denied her mental health treatment.
This columnist notes that many have criticized DeAngelis for "getting convictions at all costs."
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