Mum who strangled baby at Royal Derby Hospital detained
A mother who strangled her five-month-old son while she was in a specialist care unit has been placed under a hospital order.
Conor Young died on 12 July at the Radbourne Unit in Royal Derby Hospital, where he was staying with Samantha Pink as she underwent treatment. Nottingham Crown Court heard friends and family call her a "loving" mother. The 39-year-old had admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The court heard Pink, previously of Jessop Drive in Derby, had suffered mental health issues in her teens. Mary Prior QC, prosecuting, said from 2000 Pink appeared to have had "positively good mental health", but problems breastfeeding her daughter born in March 2018 "caused a deterioration in her mental state". The day after her son was born on 7 February Ms Prior said Pink voluntarily entered residential care "because she was concerned that her mental health may relapse", and after being discharged later that month she went back to The Beeches mother and baby unit at Royal Derby Hospital in March. She was discharged again in May but went missing on 27 June. When she was found the next day having reportedly said she intended to take her own life, she was re-admitted, with her son joining her there on 29 June. Pink was checked on every 15 minutes by staff, the court heard, which was later reduced to hourly observations following her good care of her son and response to treatment. 'Intrusive thoughts' On 12 July no problems were reported in morning checks, with a nurse last checking Pink's room at 11:45 BST. At 12:05 the nurse returned to tell her lunch was ready, Ms Prior said, but she saw Pink "sitting on her bed with her son limp in her arms". "Ms Pink said 'I've done something really bad, I've strangled him'," the court heard. Pink told police she had been planning it "for four days", but the court heard she did not report her thoughts about harming him to medical staff. Clive Stockwell QC, defending, said Conor's death had "crushed the family", but referred to testimony praising Pink as "a caring and kind woman with a compassionate heart". Piyal Sen, a forensic consultant psychiatrist at the unit where Pink has been since her son's death, said she was "severely impaired" by bipolar affective disorder at the time. Sentencing, Judge Jeremy Baker QC said Pink strangled her son because she was "overwhelmed" by her mental health and the stress of looking after two young children. He said she "sought and followed medical care" prior to the death, and had shown "deep remorse" since. As well as being placed under a hospital order under Section 37 of the Mental Health Act 1983, Pink was also put under a restriction order in Section 41 of the same legislation. Following sentencing, John Sykes, medical director of Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, offered "sincere condolences to Conor's family and to everyone who has been affected by this tragic event". He added: "Incidents of this nature are extremely rare and the trust is committed to doing all it can to learn from this experience and take steps to ensure we improve our practice wherever possible." Follow BBC East Midlands on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk.