A former Catholic school friend of Corie Walsh described the Illinois mother, accused of murdering her two-year-old son, as someone "beautiful, kind, intelligent, talented and giving." Walsh, 40, faces three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the death of her son, Barrett "Bear" Walsh, who prosecutors say was found hanging from a basement rafter in their suburban Chicago home on September 1.
The friend, who knew Walsh as a teenager, told TMZ that Walsh was sociable and involved in various school activities, including the poms team, Helping Hands club, and Mass. While they have not been in contact since their high school days, the friend stated that every interaction she remembered was positive, making the allegations against Walsh difficult to comprehend.
"Never in a million years could I have imagined something so tragic," the former classmate told TMZ.
Prosecutors allege that Walsh told investigators she killed her son because she believed he was the "devil" and the "Antichrist." The friend emphatically denied witnessing any signs of extreme religious thinking during their teenage years, noting that while they attended Mass due to being at a Catholic school, "None of us were church freaks."
Court documents state that a neighbor discovered the toddler hanging in the basement and attempted CPR. The child was pronounced dead with the cause of death listed as "asphyxia due to ligature compression of the neck." The same neighbor allegedly found Walsh upstairs in a bathtub, fully dressed and surrounded by bloody water, after she had apparently attempted to harm herself with a knife. Walsh was taken to a hospital and allegedly admitted to killing her son, according to authorities.
Walsh's defense attorney, Andrea Lyon, has stated that Walsh was experiencing a "psychotic episode" at the time of her son's death and fiercely rejected suggestions that Walsh was a "copycat" of Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy, who was accused of killing her three children. Clancy's trial ended in a mistrial. Lyon called the copycat speculation "sickening" and "baseless and cruel."
Prosecutors also alleged that Walsh had contemplated poisoning her husband, presenting a drink and prescription bottles on a table as evidence. The defense disputed this, stating that Walsh's discussions about the Clancy case involved circulating "unfounded conspiracy theories" about Clancy's husband. On the day of Bear's death, Walsh allegedly sent friends a message stating, "It's manslaughter. Please help. I'm really freaking out."
Walsh's husband and mother have expressed "unwavering support for her," according to defense attorney Robert Kerr, though they missed Walsh's detention hearing to attend their son's funeral. The defense sought Walsh's release for psychiatric treatment, but Judge Amy Bertani ordered her held in jail, citing clear and convincing evidence connecting Walsh to first-degree murder and a clear threat to her husband and other children. Walsh's next court appearance is scheduled for September 24.