Filicidal women: jail or psychiatric ward?

Objective: This study aims to examine the legal procedure that women who are charged with killing their children experience and to compare the variables that discriminate between those found guilty and those who received a medical disposition.

Method: The sample comprises 32 adult women who killed their biological children in the province of Quebec over an 11-year period (1981 to 1991).

Results: Of the sample, 18 women were found guilty, and 14 received a medical disposition.