A New Jersey woman who drowned her two young children in 2024 was found not guilty of the murders by reason of insanity, a court decided on Tuesday. Naomi Elkins, 27, was accused of killing her daughters aged 1 and 3. She drowned them in a bathtub at her Lakewood, New Jersey, home on June 25, 2024.
Elkins confessed to police that she murdered her children for religious reasons. According to psychologist Gianni Pirelli, who testified in court, Elkins believed by killing her children, she would be killing all the evil in the world. Pirelli clarified that Elkins believed she was a messianic figure and did not feel anything after the attack.
The incident occurred when rescue workers arrived to discover the two toddlers unconscious from cardiac arrest. Both children were declared dead at the scene despite attempts to revive them. The younger child was later found to have also been stabbed in the chest.
Judge weighs mental health in Elkins case
The judge was told Elkins had a history of mental illness, and this was one of the determining factors. In a letter she wrote and was read out in court, Elkins described feeling guilty and confused, stating she loved her children but felt an even greater allegiance to a divine power.
Judge Guy P. Ryan determined that Elkins was not criminally responsible for the murder because of her insanity during the killings. He sentenced her to be committed to a mental hospital for two life terms, each of 75 years as provided by state law. Elkins will be kept in the hospital until such time as the court determines that she is no longer a risk to herself or others and will be periodically checked by the court.
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