Mother in child's death to be freed

The mother who was found not guilty in 2001 of killing her 7-month-old son by reason of insanity is scheduled to be released soon. Susan Mooney, who has been in a mental institution since 2002, was told

News 12 Staff

Aug 14, 2008, 11:45 PM

Updated 5,963 days ago

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The mother who was found not guilty in 2001 of killing her 7-month-old son by reason of insanity is scheduled to be released soon.
Susan Mooney, who has been in a mental institution since 2002, was told Thursday she will be freed after a Bronx Supreme Court justice ruled she is no longer mentally ill. Mooney is to be released from the Rockland Psychiatric Center within 30 days.
Mooney "has been remorseful since day one, has been contrite, effusive in her sorrow and her remorse," says Marvin Ray Raskin, her lawyer.
In 2001 Mooney, a former Wall Street executive, was accused of killing her 7-month-old son by suffocation. Her defense team argued Mooney was suffering from postpartum psychosis. She was later found not guilty by reason of insanity.
A judge ruled a year later that Mooney should receive psychiatric help rather than a prison sentence. After reviewing the same evidence this month, the judge ruled that, "The defendant does not have a dangerous mental disorder and is no longer mentally ill."
Once Mooney is freed she will have to follow a list of conditions imposed by the judge, which she will have to comply with for a minimum of five years. If Mooney were to violate any of the conditions, she would immediately be taken into custody by the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.