ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (Court TV) — Court proceedings have been placed on hold for a Florida woman accused of killing her son after doctors deemed her incompetent.
Diana Cullom booking photo (St. Petersburg Police Dept.)
Diana Cullom, 44, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of first-degree murder in the death of her four-year-old son, Finley Cullom.
Diana Cullom was first charged in January, after police were called to her home by a teen girl who said she found her mother holding her little brother in bed after arriving home from school. When officers arrived, they said they found the defendant covered in blood from self-inflicted stab wounds and noted seeing blood throughout the house.
While officers initially believed the 4-year-old had been stabbed because of the amount of blood, the medical examiner later determined that the child had been suffocated, police said. The child’s father was not home at the time of the incident. In filings reviewed by Court TV, officers said that Diana Cullom admitted to killing her son using a plastic bag.
In a motion asking for the Court to evaluate the defendant’s competency, Diana Cullom’s attorney said she believes her client remains in the throes of a mental health crisis and does not understand the charges, legal process or possess the ability to behave appropriately in court.
A sealed psychological evaluation was filed with the Court, which found Diana Cullom incompetent. She will undergo treatment until she is deemed competent, at which point legal proceedings in the case can resume.
Prosecutors in the case previously filed a notice of their intention to seek the death penalty. They cite a number of aggravating factors in the case, including the victim being under 12 years old and being committed in a “cold, calculated and premeditated manner.”
