Mother whose foster son, 4, died of salt poisoning back in court (Hannah Overton)

Mail on Line ^ | April 27, 2012 | Rachel Quigly

[patriot08]

Hannah Overton was charged with capital murder, found guilty and handed down a life sentence.

This week the 35-year-old was back in a Texas courthouse to try and get her capital murder conviction overturned and convince a judge she did not intentionally poison the four-year-old but that he did it to himself.

The defense argued that Andrew had Pica an eating disorder characterized by an obsessive appetite. Overton and her husband told ABC's 20/20 that the boy would eat anything he could get his hands on.

The day he collapsed in their home, Andrew was found in the pantry by Overton but she could not discern what he had been eating. He threw a tantrum before vomiting and passing out. Instead of calling 911, the Overtons tried to help him before driving him to the hospital. Prosecutors said she neglected to get Andrew medical help fast enough knowing that it would kill him

She (Overton's prosecutor, Eastwood) was terminated in an unrelated matter years after the trial but has since admitted she was taking diet pills at the time and being an alcoholic.

Eastwood's co-counsel at the time of trial, Anna Jimenez, testified this week saying Eastwood was not 'truthful', and that she exhibited bizarre behavior throughout the case.

Ms Jiminez told the court: 'I was concerned there was a possibility that Sandra may have been withholding this [evidence] intentionally.'

Edgar Cortes - who treated Andrew the year before he died - and said he told Eastwood the boy had speech and developmental problems, expressing shock he was portrayed as a normal boy in the original trial.

Overton's attorney asked Dr Cortes: 'Do these developmental delays make him younger, make him in danger of accidentally harming himself by eating bad things?' to which he replied yes.

[patriot08]

Hannah Overton, a former missionary and mother of five is back in court this week to try to get her sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole overturned.

She is accused of murdering a four year old boy she and her husband were in the process of adopting. She is accused of forcing the boy to eat enough salt to kill him- despite the fact that he was known to have a bizzare eating habit where he would gorge himself and throw up, and would eat anything.

Hannah's defense was not allowed to bring in certain medical experts nor submit certain evidence. Now it is coming out that the prosecution attorney admits she was taking pills and is an alcholic. Even her associate charges that she was acting in a bizzare manner and was dishonest during the trial.

Hannah has spent almost five years in jail. Will this be enough to set her free?

This happened in my home town. I was there. It is my opinion that she was tried and convicted by an over-zealous child protective service, the media and public opinion.

I have never seen such hatred toward the young mother. The newspaper and TV was flooded with stories daily all slanted against Hannah.

Hannah with family and Andrew (left).

Hannah's husband with Andrew Burd

[patriot08]

Title shortened. Could not fit it in.

[End Times Sentinel]

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[E. Pluribus Unum]

I saw this on one of the news magazine shows. It is so obvious that this was not something caused by neglect or malice. Who expects a kid to eat so much salt it kills him?

This whole sad story is just further proof that no good deed goes unpunished.

[patriot08]

The media and public opinion had already hung her before the trial even started. It was terrible.
Some of us picketed outside the courthouse because of the unfairness of it all.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

She got Zimmermaned.

[CrazyIvan]

“Who expects a kid to eat so much salt it kills him?”

This disorder is no joke. There was a kid in my
neighborhood who had it and would clean out the ash trays
in his home!

[patriot08]

Videos (CBS)
Andrew Burd’s excessive tantrums, eating from garbage cans, eating cat food, etc

Hanna Part 1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDfAOiFHwDY

Part 2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nULUs0mTiUQ&feature=relmfu

Part 3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lu5ocED1pUM&feature=relmfu

See Picca disorder
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pica_(disorder)

[patriot08]

See Picca disorder
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pica_(disorder)

Pray for Hannah.
She’s paid enough.

[patriot08]

Please visit Hannah’s website:

http://freehannah.com/

[GeronL]

so the kid was portrayed as a normal boy when he had an eating disorder??

[WildHighlander57]

Defence not allowed to bring in evidence.....
#1 reason I can’t be on a jury.... first question outta my mouth would be “without all the information I can’t give my verdict”
I would have acquitted this lady because she has five children that depend on her.

Are all the children still with her husband?

My feeling is that child protective services went after her trying to pry the other 5 away from her so they could make bunches of money placing the children in foster care.

Free Hannah Overtonn!!!!

[patriot08]

That’s what they are saying.

The father says the boy once got into some boiled eggs and ate 18 of them before throwing up.
He once ate a whole jar of pickles, and was caught eating from the garbage and eating the cat’s food from its dish.
And yet they are saying Hannah killed him by forcing him to eat Zataran’s chili powder.

[patriot08]

After the Burd boy died, all the children were taken away from Hannah and her husband, but he eventually got them back.

Now that it’s coming out that during the trial the prosecutor was on pills and an alcholic, and her assistant
stating that she was acting in a bizzare manner and was dishonest, withheld evidence (she even stated on the stand that the prosecutor told her she’d get a conviction ‘no matter what’) I don’t see how they can refuse to let her go!

[patriot08]

Alcoholic.

[patriot08]

As you can easily tell by the local TV news, their reports are still slanted against her.

http://www.kiiitv.com/story/17858301/dr-fernandez-continues-testimony-in-overton-hearing

[Axenolith]

Let her go, and they’d better give her about $100K/year for the lockup too...

[patriot08]

I hope she’s able to get out, and I hope she sues them.

[WildHighlander57]

I watched the videos but didn’t have the sound on, so didn’t catch that about the children being taken away.

How often does this happen, that children with pica get into dire situations or die from it and they go after the parents as what happened in this case?

How long were the children away from their father?

They should press charges against the prosecutor, her assistant, the CPS people involved, anyone that railroaded Mrs Overton and stole her children.

[patriot08]

‘How long were the children away from their father?’

I don’t know how long it was before the husband regained custody of the children. I do know the state had them for awhile, then Hannah’s parents were awarded custody.

‘How often does this happen, that children with pica get into dire situations or die from it and they go after the parents as what happened in this case?’

I imagine it happens more often than one would suspect.
There was a famous case in England where the parents were accused of killing their adoptive child with salt, but they were proven innocent in the end, as the child had picca.
This was brought up in the Overton trial to no avail.

The prosecutors, the media and the public were determined to hang Hannah and her husband (they went after her husband, too. Couldn’t make it stick.) and take their childeren permanently before the trial ever began.

You know, I’m amazed more people aren’t interested in what was done to this young mother.
I’ll bet if I had posted something some dumb Lib celebrity had said, I’d get 75 replies.

.