Decision in Newborn Murder Case Could Come Today

A judge could decide as early as today whether a Fullerton woman is guilty of murdering her newborn son, a death she contends was triggered by a rare pregnancy-related depression.

Jackie Lynn Anderson, 38, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, contending she was incapable of helping her child after delivering him by herself in the bathroom of her mother’s Fullerton townhome.

Her mother found the newborn’s body in a cardboard box the next day while searching the trunk of Anderson’s car. A medical examiner determined the 5-pound boy was born alive Aug. 11, 1995, but died from a lack of appropriate care at delivery.

Prosecutors have charged Anderson with murder, contending she was sane and has shown a pattern of reckless negligence, including the 1992 abandonment of a half-day-old girl who survived a similar unattended, at-home delivery. The newborn girl and three other children from Anderson’s previous pregnancies were adopted or placed with relatives.

Anderson testified in her own defense Tuesday, crying at times as she described becoming increasingly depressed and dependent on alcohol during her earlier pregnancies.

“I didn’t like myself very much,” said Anderson, who testified she sometimes consumed up to 30 beers a day. “I felt worthless. I felt unhappy. I couldn’t function. I couldn’t concentrate.”

During her last two pregnancies, Anderson said she denied to herself and others that she was pregnant, even as her body changed. Her mother ultimately confronted her during her last pregnancy, and she testified was in the process of arranging medical care through social services when she went into labor.

Anderson testified she remembered little about the delivery. She said she remembers hearing the baby take a few raspy breaths, then believed he was dead.

Three psychiatrists concluded Anderson was sane at the time of the delivery, while a fourth said the woman may have been suffering a psychotic breakdown triggered by the tremendous hormonal changes caused by pregnancy and childbirth.

Margaret Spinelli, a New York psychiatrist studying pregnancy and depression, testified Monday that Anderson was already suffering severe mood disorders, and her condition was likely worsened by the hormonal changes of her pregnancy.

Attorneys are expected to present final arguments this morning to Orange County Superior Court Judge Anthony J. Rackauckas Jr. Both sides agreed the judge, rather than a jury, could decide the case. Anderson faces at least 15 years to life in prison if convicted of murder of the newborn and child endangerment stemming from the 1992 delivery.