Hazel Waters pleads guilty to manslaughter of toddler son

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Hazel Waters pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of her two-year-old son, Muhammad Hassan Khan. The proceedings were reported on 23 May 2017.

The charge concerned his death between 15 and 16 October 2014. He was found dead in a bedroom at their home on 16 October.

At the sentencing hearing, two psychiatrists told the court that Waters had a personality disorder that diminished her responsibility for the killing. Justice Patrick McCarthy said he would give his sentencing decision on 1 June 2017.

Dr Brenda Wright, who prepared a report for the prosecution, said Waters was suffering from an acute and transient psychotic disorder at the time of the killing. She said there was insufficient evidence to assess whether Waters qualified for a verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity because Waters claimed to have no memory of the killing.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan said Waters’s failure to recall the events meant she was denied a verdict of insanity. He also said she needed ongoing treatment and supervision.

This report covers an earlier stage of the case. Later developments are not reported here.