Mary Barnett Case Study

Mary Barnett, the mother of a six month old daughter, left for San Francisco to see her fiancé. Leaving her daughter behind, she returned seven days later to find her child dead. After calling the police and telling them she left the child with a baby sitter, she later told them this was not true and that she left the daughter on purpose knowing the consequences. A trial was then conducted to determine if she would be convicted of second degree murder and be sentenced to 18 years. The witnesses and information they provided was laid before me and I am to determine with the evidence presented whether Mary Barnett is rightfully guilty or not guilty. The first witness for the case was a woman named Caroline Haspers who lived in the same apartment building as Mary. She recalled on January 30th that Mary looked distraught and that her daughter was not with her. She also provided information that was not relevant to the charges saying that, “I always thought Ms. Barnett was a disgrace—I mean, she didn’t have a husband.” Given that she did not
Upon arriving he described her as distraught and extremely upset. Her original story said that she left her baby with a sitter when she left and returned to her deceased baby; however, when asked what happened in detail she changed her story. This second response said, “I remember making airline reservations for my trip. Then I tried to find a baby sitter, but I couldn’t. I knew that I was leaving Alison alone and that I wouldn’t be coming back for a while, but I had to get to California at all costs. I visited my mother and then left.” The information provided by Policeman A provided valuable information and was certainly credible. The defendant was negligent of the child and clearly stated that she knew she was leaving behind her daughter even though she could not find a sitter, which also showed she knew from right and