MICHAEL KUNZELMANAssociated Press
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The mother of a New Orleans woman arrested in the death of her 3-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter said the woman had been treated for bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, but had stopped taking her medication months ago.
Eleanor Chapman said she did not believe her daughter, Chelsea Thornton, was capable of killing the children.
"My child loves her children," Chapman said Thursday as Thornton, 23, awaited an initial court appearance after being booked with first-degree murder.
In court later, a judge ordered Thornton held without bond. Thornton rubbed her face with shackled hands as a prosecutor outlined the case against her. She did not enter a plea.
Relatives wept as she was led from the courtroom.
Kerry Cuccia, director of the Capital Defense Project of Southeast Louisiana, said Thornton's attorneys are only at the "information-gathering stage."
"We feel it would be imprudent to make a statement at this time," Cuccia said.
The bodies of the boy and girl were found by their paternal grandmother Wednesday evening.
Police found Thornton and questioned her later that night at University Hospital, where she had gone to seek treatment for abdominal pains and a headache.
In a court record, police said Thornton told investigators she shot the boy in the head then drowned him in the bathtub. "She then turned to shoot her daughter, however, the gun failed to fire. She then placed her in the bathtub and drowned her," the record said.
Police said the weapon used was a semi-automatic handgun.
Chapman said her daughter had enrolled at Cameron College in New Orleans and was studying to become a medical assistant. "My child was doing good," Chapman said. "She was in school."
She also said she does not believe the gun police said was used in the crime belonged to Thornton.
"Chelsea never had a gun. She hasn't been in no kind of trouble," Chapman said.
(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
Apartment building where the children were found in the 3300 block of Audubon Court (photo by Jessica Holly)
