Mother who drove children into ocean held on $1.2 million bond, remains under psychological watch

A North Carolina mother of three is being held in isolation and on $1.2 million bond after attempting to drown her children by driving them into the ocean.

Ebony Wilkerson’s defense attorneys have argued that she belongs in a mental hospital, not a jail cell. 

From Orlando Sentinel:

Her mental state is unstable, doctors testified, and her pregnancy — which is just more than 28 weeks along — has complications.

The state, in questioning the doctors, revealed a startling detail: State Attorney R.J. Larizza said Wilkerson was taken to a psychiatric ward when she was seen “beating her stomach with her fists” after her arrest.

Authorities say Wilkerson, 32, intentionally drove a minivan into the water on March 4 with her children, ages 3, 9 and 10, inside. Bystanders and lifeguards intervened, saving their lives.

Read more at the Orlando Sentinel

During Monday’s hearing, the defense pushed for suspension of Wilkerson’s bond and for her to be released to Halifax Health for care.

Psychiatrist Dr. James Moore said he believed that she could be helped.