A suicidal Colorado mom who admitted to murdering her infant son said she killed him because she "didn't want him to suffer in life" like she did.
On Wednesday, Anna Englund, 31, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in connection with the death of her 2-month-old Miles, according to the Boulder County District Attorney.
As part of the plea agreement, two counts of first-degree murder were dismissed and she was sentenced to 40 years in prison on the lesser charge.
"This guilty plea and lengthy sentence is the right result in this very sad case," DA Michael Dougherty said in a statement. "It is heartbreaking to acknowledge the immense emotional toll on the baby's father and family, as well as all the police officers who desperately tried to prevent this tragic murder."
Following the birth of their child, Miles' father had been concerned about his wife's mental health and "had been paying close attention to the mother and baby," said prosecutors.
When the father went to the bathroom on June 10, 2023, Englund drove Miles blocks away from their home and strangled him to death in the car "because I didn't want him to suffer in life like I have," she told police, according to the affidavit, the Denver Post reported.
"She was worried about all of the things that could happen" to her baby "because the world was 'crazy,'" police alleged.
Miles' father reported the pair missing that evening, but officers were unable to track mother and baby down. It wasn't until Englund showed up at Boulder Community Health five hours later that she called police and confessed to killing her baby.
Englund told investigators she was sleep-deprived, struggling with postpartum mental health issues and thoughts of suicide since welcoming Miles. A doctor prescribed her medication at the time, "but she only took it once and she felt more suicidal...she refused to take it again," according to the affidavit.
"Our prosecution team worked hard to ensure that we were able to secure the right outcome for this defendant, which is a very lengthy sentence to state prison," Dougherty stated.
