Brussels Mother Sentenced to 2 Years for Infant’s Death in Negligence Case

The verdict was handed down around 8:45 p.m. on Monday. Soraya Sahli was sentenced to two years in prison, the maximum sentence for involuntary manslaughter due to lack of foresight or precaution, while her defense had requested a suspended prison sentence, reports Belga.

In the judgment delivered in open court, the twelve jurors and the three judges of the Brussels Assize Court noted the "extreme gravity" of the acts of which the 31-year-old woman was found guilty. "Through her fault, she directly caused the death of her child, they argued. She neglected a young child, whom she left lying on a bed without direct supervision." Based on the investigation, including the analysis of camera images, they note a "manifest lack of attention" on the part of the mother towards her baby.

The facts for which the 31-year-old woman is accused occurred on the night of February 18 to 19, 2019. She, who had recently separated from her husband and father of her six children and "seemed under pressure due to a conflict with her parents and sisters and due to financial problems," was staying in a hotel in Saint-Gilles with her two youngest daughters, M., aged three, and Lydia, aged two months.

According to her explanations, she had "wedged" her baby between two cushions on the bed, before taking a shower. But on her return, M. was sitting on one of these cushions. Lydia, who was underneath, could no longer breathe. Soraya immediately went to see the hotel receptionist, who called the emergency services. Victim of asphyxiation by obstruction of the airways, little Lydia died on February 26, 2019 at the Queen Fabiola University Children’s Hospital (Huderf) in Laeken.