Lawyer: Woman Who Drove Into Ocean Had Disorder
DAYTONA BEACH (CBSMiami/ AP) — Attorneys are arguing a pregnant woman who drove her minivan into the ocean with her children inside, had a mental disorder.
Attorneys say the mental disorder kept Ebony Wilkerson, 32, from knowing the difference between right and wrong at the time.
Defense attorneys for Wilkerson filed a motion of intent to use an insanity defense. Public Defender James Purdy told the Daytona Beach News-Journal Monday that experts will testify that the 32-year-old from North Charleston, South Carolina, had a mental disease or defect in March, when she drove into the surf off Daytona Beach.
Purdy says the motion doesn't necessarily mean they'll use insanity as a defense, adding that not guilty remains the "number one" priority.
According to the motion, attorneys expect to prove Wilkerson had schizophrenia and a psychotic disorder.
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