Husband of mother accused of killing toddler son stands by her in court as she pleads not guilty

From the Newshound archive · first published 24 September 2026 · last updated 25 September 2026.

Corie Walsh, 40, appeared at Will County Courthouse in Joliet, Illinois on Thursday, entering a not guilty plea to the murder of her two-year-old son Barrett — while her husband Michael Walsh, whom she is also accused of attempting to poison, sat in court to support her. Attorney Andrea Lyon told reporters Walsh's family love her and insist the killing was a psychotic episode, not a reflection of who she is. The case has drawn widespread comparison to that of Lindsay Clancy, the Massachusetts mother Walsh had become obsessed with following Clancy's own child-killing trial.

Prosecutors allege Walsh strangled Barrett, suspended his body from a rafter, and then attempted to take her own life on 1 September.

Lyon told reporters Walsh 'has never been violent' and her family are united behind her, insisting she 'was psychotic' at the time.

A former Chicago chief of detectives warns a psychiatric defence in child murder cases is 'very rare' and far harder to run than in adult cases.