NY - Freeport woman, 45, strangled, 12yo daughter charged, 28 May 2005

http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/47548.htm




June 1, 2005 -- A 12-year-old Long Island girl charged with strangling her mom with her bare hands committed the heinous act because the woman demanded she clean her room, authorities said yesterday...




DIRTY ROOM LED GIRL, 12, TO SLAY MOM

By KIERAN CROWLEY
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June 1, 2005 -- A 12-year-old Long Island girl charged with strangling her mom with her bare hands committed the heinous act because the woman demanded she clean her room, authorities said yesterday.
The shocking revelation came out in Nassau County Family Court in Westbury, where the Freeport girl was arraigned on charges of juvenile delinquency yesterday.

Despite the horrifying crime, her defense attorney said the girl killed in self-defense.

"This is a stellar kid. She's a very well-adjusted child," defense attorney Donald Birnbaum said of the girl, whose name was not released because she's a minor.

Birnbaum said there was a past "allegation of parental abuse" by the victim against her daughter and added "we feel very strongly" that a claim of self-defense will be "justified." ...

Deputy Nassau County Attorney Stephanie Hubelbank asked the judge to keep the girl in the juvenile detention facility because her mother's family "were not cooperating" with the investigation.

Hubelbank said that because the girl's father lived out of town, there was no suitable place for her to go, pending a Child Protective Services investigation of her home environment — which she requested.

Marks ordered the investigation and also ordered the girl held in custody until the next court hearing Friday.


There is more here than meets the eye, I'll wager

I really hope she didn't kill her mom just because
she was told to do something she didn't want to do.

But I agree- it sounds odd that the family is not cooperating

"This is a stellar kid. She's a very well-adjusted child," defense attorney Donald Birnbaum said of the girl, whose name was not released because she's a minor.

Birnbaum said there was a past "allegation of parental abuse" by the victim against her daughter and added "we feel very strongly" that a claim of self-defense will be "justified." ...

Am I reading this wrong? Parental abuse means the kids abused the mom, correct? So how does Birnbaum claim justified self-defense?

1986 said:

[ii]Birnbaum said there was a past "allegation of parental abuse" by the victim against her daughter and added "we feel very strongly" that a claim of self-defense will be "justified." ...
[/i]
Am I reading this wrong? Parental abuse means the kids abused the mom, correct? So how does Birnbaum claim justified self-defense?

Click to expand...

Technically you're correct, but Birnbaum seems to indicate that the abuse was on the part of the mother AGAINST the daughter, thus a POSSIBLE justification if the girl was defending herself?

That's right. The defense attorney is going to claim that the little girl was probably being attacked by her mother and had to defend herself. Sad no matter which way it happened.

What exactly is the difference between child abuse and parental abuse?