Prosecutors: 2-month-old was buried alive
Charged with capital murder, mother undergoes psychiatric evaluation
By TODD ACKERMAN and BRIAN ROGERS
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
April 23, 2010, 11:47PM
A 2-month-old boy whose mother originally told police he had been abducted by a stranger died after being buried alive near Buffalo Bayou in west Houston, prosecutors said Friday.
Narjes Modarresi, 28, was charged with capital murder after leading police to the baby's body, which was found facedown in a shallow grave Thursday. She underwent a psychiatric evaluation Friday at the Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority of Harris County.
During a probable cause hearing Friday, prosecutors said initial reports from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences showed the baby had mud and water in his lungs, indicating he was alive when buried. The preliminary cause of death was asphyxiation.
Modarresi's family has hired defense lawyer George Parnham, well-known for his defense of Andrea Yates, a Clear Lake mother who was found innocent by reason of insanity in July 2006 in the drowning death of her five children in the family bathtub in 2001. She was sent to a state mental hospital.
Parnham said his team still is in the process of gathering Modarresi's medical history, but acknowledged that she has a history of mental illness.
It's a tragedy that could have been averted, said Parnham, who has spoken with Modarresi family members, but will not meet with her until today. The family's taking it tough.
Parnham said Modarresi was on the anti-psychotic medication Zyprexa, a mood stabilizer used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is considered a risk factor for postpartum psychosis, a condition that involves losing touch with reality after childbirth, often experiencing hallucinations or delusions
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/moms/6969654.html
