A 34-year-old mother drowned her three children in the ocean near their Coney Island home in September 2022. The father said his 4-year-old daughter begged not to be sent home, saying she was scared to go back to her mother. The mother admitted drowning the children and told the court she was on autopilot and could not remember much of what happened. She described her actions as driven by postpartum depression and said she loved her children while struggling with the condition, especially with her youngest child. She expressed remorse and said time on Rikers Island helped her connect with other women with postpartum depression. The father’s victim impact statement described the last words of the child before the deaths.
"“The last thing Lily said to me and my mother - which will forever haunt me - was 'I'm scared to go back to mommy, and want to stay here with you and grandma',” Small said in a gut-wrenching victim impact statement."
"Merdy, now 34, was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison in Brooklyn Supreme Court after she admitted to drowning her three children - Zachary, 7; Liliana Stephens, 4; and Oliver Bondarev, just 3 months - in the ocean near their Coney Island home."
"“If I had to describe it, I was on autopilot,” the troubled mom told the court, claiming that she couldn't remember most of what happened on the night of the deaths."
"“Their passing is not in vain. I have spent a lot of time on Rikers [Island] talking with other women with postpartum depression, and they have made me feel less alone,” the mom said."
Read at New York Post
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