St. Louis woman convicted of poisoning her 2 children, killing 1, gets life in prison
By APFriday, August 14, 2009
Mo. woman gets life in prison for poisoning 2 kids
ST. LOUIS, Mo. — A St. Louis woman convicted of poisoning her two children, one of them fatally, will spend the rest of her life in prison.
A judge on Thursday sentenced 38-year-old Judy Pickens to two life terms plus 157 years.
Pickens was convicted in June of second-degree murder, first-degree assault and other charges. She has maintained her innocence.
Pickens’ children were taken to a St. Louis hospital in October 2004 suffering from unexplained vomiting, diarrhea, fever and dehydration.
Her 4-year-old son died at the hospital. Prosecutors say the boy had been injected with ground-up blood pressure pills.
Pickens’ 5-year-old daughter recovered after hospital staff grew suspicious and kept the mother and child apart.
Information from: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, www.stltoday.com
