manchester

news

Mum who killed her son has died

THE tragic tale of a young Oldham mother, who murdered her son while suffering from severe depression, has been revisited by the local coroner.

An inquest heard on Friday that Anna Maria Hobson had died in a mental hospital at the end of last year after spending most of her life incarcerated.

Anna Maria, who killed her 14-month-old son Timothy in 1976 under her married name of Cheetham, had suffered from psychiatric illness since her teens. She had grown up in Ashton before moving to Oldham.

Timothy’s death took place at her new family home in Meldrum Walk, Oldham, when the 26-year-old mum smothered her child with a plastic bag.

Hobson had taken an overdose of Valium and left a note to her husband Andrew saying she had killed herself and the child, but she was to survive and stand trial.

She admitted smothering Timothy, but claimed the balance of her mind was affected by the drugs she had taken.

Nevertheless, she was convicted of murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1977, despite maintaining her innocence and admitting only to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

In court she said she thought she was going to die from the overdose and killed Timothy because she didn’t want to leave him without a mother.

A psychiatrist backed her version of events at trial, saying she was suffering from depression and an abnormal personality, but three other psychiatrists acting for the prosecution held that she was responsible for her actions.

Since her conviction in 1977 she had either lived in prison or secure hospitals, the inquest in Oldham heard.

She had suffered from numerous mental and physical illnesses and had to take 20 tablets a day as part of her treatment.

Since April 2003 she had been resident at a secure unit at Prestwich Hospital, Bury, where she died on December 7 last year. She had collapsed into the arms of a nurse and all efforts to resuscitate her had failed.

A post-mortem found evidence of fluid around the heart, chronic lung problems and cirosis.

Verdict: Death by natural causes.

Submit your comments
View comments (12 comments. Last comment 08/01/2006 at 03:13)