Psych exam ordered for mom accused of letting newborn die
A McHenry County judge today ordered a psychological examination of a former Lake in the Hills woman awaiting trial on charges she secretly gave birth in 2007 and left her newborn son to die wrapped in a plastic bag under a bathroom sink.
The lawyer for Lyndsey R. Tucker sought the evaluation, saying this morning that there are issues regarding her mental state at the time of the child's birth as well as now.
"There are questions as to her sanity at the time of the alleged offense and whether she can stand trial based on the medications she is now taking," attorney Lawrence W. Levin said.
"Certainly, if necessary, it could be the basis of an insanity defense," Levin added. "It could determine whether she could understand right from wrong or the ramifications of her actions."
McHenry County prosecutors did not object to the requested evaluation.
Tucker, 27, faces charges of involuntary manslaughter and concealment of a homicide stemming from the death of a boy she gave birth to in July 2007 in her boyfriend's Hebron-area apartment.
Authorities said Tucker kept her pregnancy hidden from her boyfriend, who was the baby's father, and family members, blaming her weight gain on prescription medicines.
Police said Tucker gave birth to the boy in her boyfriend's shower, then wrapped him in a plastic bag and placed him under a sink. Her boyfriend found the newborn later that morning, after rushing Tucker to a hospital when she began bleeding profusely.
The boy's cause of death was asphyxia due to obstruction of the mouth and nose by a placenta membrane, the McHenry County Coroner's office said. About one in 1,000 babies are born with a similar obstruction, but the membrane can be removed easily to clear the newborn's breathing passage.
The charges against Tucker do not allege that she intentionally killed the baby, but rather claim she did not take necessary acts so that he could survive.
Tucker currently is serving a four-year prison sentence on federal bank robbery charges stemming from holdups in February 2007 at a pair of Lake in the Hills banks.