Woman who throttled baby girl walks free

A WOMAN who throttled her baby daughter with a pair of knickers within minutes of giving birth alone in her bathroom is to walk free from jail.

Gintare Suminaite, 30, killed her child at the bedsit she shared with her boyfriend on April 5 last year.

Last month, the defendant, from Bognor Regis in West Sussex, denied murder but admitted infanticide as she was mentally disturbed by the effects of giving birth.

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Suminaite, who spent 298 days on remand, was sentenced at the Old Bailey to a 24-month community order with a rehabilitation requirement order.

The murder charge was ordered to lie on file.

Prosecutor Ed Brown QC told how the child was the product of a secret affair.

Suminaite kept her pregnancy hidden from her long-term partner.

The defendant, who appeared in court by videolink from Bronzefield jail, wept throughout the hearing.

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The court heard that she had been emotionally and socially isolated during her life in England.

Sentencing, Mr Justice Nicol said: ‘At the time of giving birth your were in a state of extreme anxiety and panic amounting to a temporary impairment of the balance of your mind.’