A mother accused of fatally hanging her 2-year-old son allegedly sang a song from "The Wizard of Oz" while being questioned by police, investigators revealed in court documents. Corie Walsh, 40, reportedly broke into a rendition of "Follow the Yellow Brick Road" instead of answering questions about her son Barrett's death.
Walsh is charged with first-degree murder after her two older children discovered their younger brother with a rope around his neck in their Frankfurt, Illinois, home. The children ran to a neighbor's house for help, and emergency services pronounced Barrett dead at the scene. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death was asphyxia due to ligature compression of the neck.
Prosecutors stated that Walsh, who was found in a bathtub filled with bloody water and had apparently attempted to take her own life by slashing her wrists and thighs, confessed to killing her son. She allegedly claimed the child was the "anti-Christ" and the "devil."
During the initial police interaction, Walsh reportedly believed she had killed all four of her children, despite only Barrett being deceased and an infant found unsupervised in the home. She also confessed to planning to poison her husband, according to court documents.
The incident occurred shortly after Walsh reportedly sent friends texts expressing confusion and stating her belief that Lindsay Clancy's husband, not Clancy herself, was responsible for the deaths of their children. Walsh was allegedly infatuated with Clancy, whose trial for the strangulation deaths of her three children, occurring while she was reportedly suffering from postpartum psychosis, had recently ended in a mistrial.
Walsh's defense attorneys have argued that she was suffering from severe mental illness and a psychotic episode at the time of the incident, drawing parallels to the defense used in Clancy's case. However, Walsh's attorney rejected the notion that his client was a "copycat," calling the comparison "sickening."
Despite defense pleas for immediate mental health care, a judge ordered Walsh detained, citing a risk to her remaining children and husband. Her husband, who was out of state during the events, has expressed unwavering support and is cooperating with authorities. Walsh's attorney stated her husband has been fully supportive. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for September 24.