A Louisiana woman was indicted for the murder of her two children by allegedly throwing them off a bridge into a lake, officials noted. Ureka Black, 33, is accused of throwing her 10-month-old son and his 5-year-old brother into Cross Lake in Shreveport on September 24. The infant did not survive the fall by the 5-year-old did. The identities of the children are not known at the moment.
According to KSLA-TV, Black was indicted this week on a second-degree murder charge and an attempted murder charge, the Caddo Parish District Attorney James E. Stewart, Sr. informed on Wednesday.
Responding to reports of an infant's body floating in the water, Shreveport police arrived at the scene around 10:52 am in September. By the time rescue workers recovered him from the lake, the toddler was dead. His 5-year-old brother was found floating alive nearby and was rushed to Louisiana State University Medical Center.
Mental illness
Black's third child was found alive and in a different location. She was later arrested over the state border at a rest stop in Waskom, Texas. Her sisters told KLSA that they suspected she battled mental health issues for most of her life. One of Black's sisters, Felicia told the station that every time they tried to get her help, she refused.
"She felt like nothing was wrong with her," Black said. Her other sister, Pycolyia said her mental health factored in her crime. "People are just painting this picture of her being a terrible person like she's just a monster like she just intentionally tried to do this," she said, before stressing that Black suffered from mental illness.
According to The Associated Press, Black is facing a life sentence if convicted on the murder charge and 10-50 years if convicted of the attempted murder charge.
