Mother to face court over baby's murder
A young mother charged with the murder of her six-week-old baby girl is due before court today.
The 26-year-old woman was arrested outside her Newcastle home on Friday morning after the infant was found inside with her throat slit.
It is understood the woman's mental health will form a central part of the investigation and she is expected to undergo a psychiatric assessment.
A neighbour said she heard a child's screams from the home of the family, who she has described as "very normal and just happy".
Emergency services discovered the baby girl's body in a house in Wallsend around 9am yesterday, after a family member alerted police.
The six-week-old girl is believed to have died after her throat was allegedly slit by her mother.
She arrested at the Curry Street home and led away from the scene in handcuffs.
She was taken to Waratah police station for questioning and was expected to undergo a psychiatric assessment.
Police are investigating whether postnatal depression was a factor.
The woman has been refused bail.
Newcastle City Local Area Commander Superintendent John Gralton said that several family members were at home at the time of the incident.
"It's too early to speculate on a lot of things at this point in time but we are treating it as suspicious and we'll look to be referring some charges down the track," he said.
"It's a very tragic set of circumstances here today and our heart goes out to other members of the family and friends of this family."
A neighbour reported hearing a child screaming earlier in the morning.
Police have taped off a large section of Curry Street and are continuing to carry out their investigations. The Homicide Squad is also assisting local detectives.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
