Romechia Simms, Md. mother, ‘not criminally responsible’ for toddler’s death on swing: psychologist

A court-appointed psychologist has determined that Romechia Simms, a Maryland woman who had been charged in the May 2015 death of her 3-year-old son, was not criminally responsible for her actions since she suffers from schizophrenia. On Monday, the court agreed.

Ms. Simms, 25, had been facing charges of manslaughter, first-degree child abuse and child neglect after she was found pushing the lifeless body of her son, Ji’Aire Donnell Lee, on a swing in a LaPlata, Maryland, park last year.

Officials later determined that the boy died from hypothermia and dehydration, and this his mother had been pushing the swing for upwards of 40 hours by the time they were discovered.

Teresa Grant, a psychologist with the Maryland Office of Forensic Services, has since concluded that the mother’s mental condition caused her to “lack substantial capacity to appreciate the criminality of her conduct or to conform her behavior to meet the requirements of the law,” The Washington Post reported on Monday, citing a newly released 14-page report.

The psychologist’s findings also note that Ms. Simms had sought medical help at least twice in early 2015, and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and prescribed medication one month before she was arrested in her child’s death.

In court on Monday, prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed to find the mother not criminally responsible for her son’s death as a result of her condition and recommended she receive treatment in lieu of prison time.

“She was just trapped,” said Elizabeth Connell, a public defender who represented Ms. Simms, The Post reported. “What was happening was a mental breakdown, mental illness taking over her.”

Under Maryland law, a defendant can be declared not criminally responsible for a crime if a mental condition prevents them from appreciating the criminality of their conduct. In lieu of being incarcerated in prison, they are instead committed to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene for care and treatment.

The Post said Ms. Simms pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter on Monday, but did so under an Alford plea — a legal procedure in which she didn’t admit fault but agreed that prosecutors had enough evidence to pursue a conviction.

Judge Hayward West agreed to allow Ms. Simms to avoid prison time, but she’ll be subject to routine monitoring by state psychologists and prohibited from making unsupervised contact with children. Additionally, she’ll have to submit to blood tests to ensure she’s being treated for her condition.

Ms. Simms admitted in court that she had been off her medication for a “couple of days” when she took her son to the park last year and began hearing voices.

“Did I mean for any of this to happen? No. It’s just an unfortunate situation,” Ms. Simms told the court, The Post reported.