22 year-old Felicia Chen, the mother who is accused of killing her 3 babies, was back in Magistrate's Court today. The outcome of today's hearing is that based on the advice of her psychologist, she will continue to be remanded at a mental health facility in Belmopan until June 21st.
So, this makes her 4th trip to Magistrate's Court, and the 3rd time that it is decided that she must continue to receive mental help. And while 7News been closely monitoring the case, we can't help but notice that members of the police department have been doing an exceptional job at shielding her from our cameras, and by extension, the public.
There are 2 unusual features of the case. The first is that, neither the media nor the public is allowed inside the courtroom whenever Chen must be given a hearing before a sitting magistrate. That sort of treatment is mostly reserved for cases which involve minors and victims of sexual abuse when they testify. It is also odd that Chen is being cradled in the bosom of the female officer every time she makes a trip to and from the court.
Well today, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Cheryl Lynn Vidal, told the media today that these steps have been taken on the orders of the court.
And if you are wondering why the same care was not afforded to Jared Avery Ranguy who stands accused of killing his mother, sister and stepfather, the DPP said that at the time of his arraignment in November of last year, there was no mental facility active which could accommodate him.
She continues on that Ranguy was later afforded the same mental treatment while on remand at the Belize Central Prison, and that a medical team makes regular assessments to his mental health.
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