Court prioritises mental health treatment in sentencing of Narok Mother

Court prioritises mental health care over imprisonment in Narok double infanticide case. [File, Standard]]

The Narok High Court has prioritised mental health treatment for a woman in a double infanticide case.

Justice Charles Kariuki sentenced Truphena Chepkemoi to two years' probation after finding out that Chepkemoi was mentally unstable during the killing of her two children.

Chepkemoi confessed to killing her two sons, Festus Kiprop and Brian Kipkoech, aged four and two respectively, on June 2, 2022, at Ilmotiok in Narok County.

She confessed to having been depressed, claiming that her mother, Hellen Chebet, had pressured her to leave the house with her children.

For a long time, she said her mother had nagged her to leave her home with her children, yet she had no place to seek refuge.

With nothing to do, she summoned her two children to her bedroom, killing.

“It was around 9 am, I was alone in my mother’s house, I called my elder son, Kiprop, to the bedroom as his brother Kipkoech was sleeping, I hit them on the head with a metal rod, then strangled them to death using a mosquito net thread,” she said.

After killing her children, she surrendered herself to the Ilmotiok Police Post and reported.

Police officers visited the homestead and found the bodies of the two boys on the bed, which were taken to Longisa County Referral Morgue.

The postmortem report revealed that the duo died due to asphyxia secondary to neck strangulation.

In her mitigation, she regretted her actions, admitting that she was deeply depressed at the time and that she had repented and was remorseful.

The pre-sentencing report stated Chepkemoi was diagnosed with clinical depression, observing that her actions were not premeditated but rather a result of a breakdown brought about by accumulated stress and hopelessness.

“She had been undergoing counselling and psychiatric treatment while in custody and has shown significant improvement in her emotional stability. Her family has forgiven her and remains supportive, having actively participated in reconciliation efforts,” read the report.

Justice Kariuki noted the post-conviction report's recommendation regarding Chepkemoi and her willingness to continue with treatment, and the reconciliatory environment at home.

The judge said that a non-custodial sentence for Chepkemoi was suitable to allow her to continue the mental health treatment.

“Having considered the entire spectrum of the material above presented to this court, the age of the case and the period the accused has been in custody, and the disclosed circumstances leading to the death of the victim, Chepkemoi will be sentenced to two years' probation,” the judge said.