Woman jailed for trying to murder toddler by giving her adult medication
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Toddler Murder Attempt: Woman Sentenced to Minimum Six-Year Prison Term
Ninoda.com – A 35-year-old woman from Glenrothes has been handed a minimum six-year custodial sentence after a jury concluded she tried to kill a two-year-old girl by repeatedly dosing her with adult-strength medicines. Laura Docherty received a lifelong restriction order at the High Court in Edinburgh, meaning she must complete at least six years behind bars before she can petition for release.
Judge’s Verdict and Remarks
Delivering the sentence, Judge Michael O’Grady KC described the conduct in stark terms.
“The word ‘wicked’ is an old fashioned word, but there are times when no other word will suffice.”
The judge added that it was “absolutely plain” the offences were carried out to generate “attention and drama,” and noted that on one occasion Docherty came within a “hair’s breadth” of killing the child. He recounted that a paramedic had to deploy every skill at his disposal to pull the toddler back from the brink of death while Docherty filmed the scene.
“You deny your guilt. You accept no responsibility. You show no remorse or insight. You blame others for the situation you find yourself in.”
O’Grady told Docherty that any eventual release would rest with the Scottish parole board and warned she would likely spend “a significant period of years in custody.”
Details of the Offences
The court heard that between April 2021 and February 2023, Docherty administered antidepressants and painkilling drugs — none of which had been prescribed for the child — at an Edinburgh residence, on a ward at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, and at other locations. The repeated dosing triggered seizures and episodes in which the girl’s level of consciousness dropped sharply. She required resuscitation, hospital admission, and placement on a ventilator, followed by further medical investigations and procedures.
Trial and Defence
Docherty had pleaded not guilty at a trial held in December at the High Court in Edinburgh. The jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict on the attempted murder charge.
Defence counsel Simon Gilbride urged the court to impose a substantial fixed-term sentence followed by community supervision rather than a lifelong restriction. He characterised the offences as “extraordinary behaviour” and acknowledged:
“She is going to have to address her behaviour in order to have any kind of meaningful future.”
The court also heard that a report prepared on Docherty concluded she suffers from an emotionally unstable personality disorder.
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