Mother jailed over child's murder

Hill, 32, drowned Naomi, who had mild cerebral palsy, in a bath at their Connah's Quay home. Hill admitted killing Naomi but denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility.

But during a two-week trial at Chester Crown Court a jury heard that hard-drinking Hill was ashamed of Naomi's condition, which meant the little girl had to use calipers to help her walk.

The jury found Hill guilty of Naomi's murder and Judge Elgan Edwards, the Recorder of Chester, sentenced her to life in prison with a minimum term of 15 years.

The judge told Hill there was no excuse for what she did.

He said the aggravating features in the case were the vulnerability of Naomi and the breach of trust between a mother and daughter.

He said: "You killed your own daughter because you could not cope with her disability.

"You had other pressures upon you, a disintegrating marriage and you decided to kill your own daughter by drowning her."

Because of the murder conviction Hill will not return to a secure unit but go straight to prison, the judge said.

He commented on Hill's "sad" history of mental health problems and said he hoped she would be transferred back to hospital very soon.