In the court hearing of Bernard Derr, the man who nearly disemboweled a baby sitting in her stroller in Washington Heights, Derr's police statements after the incident were released, revealing that he had to stab the baby because roommates at his group home were bothering him. In one statement, Derr said his roommates' requests for him to clean up made him angry ("Those two fellas made me angry. I was going to stab them and then decided to stab a baby. I knew it was wrong to stab the baby, but I had to feel better.") while in another statement, he said, "They were just hounding the s--- out of me and trying to 'f--- me' because [they are] homosexual. I said, 'F--- it. I had to kill something,' so I grabbed my knife that I bought ... and went outside and stabbed the baby in the stroller because I had to kill something." And then after the stabbing, he went back to the group home, waiting for the police.
Derr pleaded not guilty, so the judge ordered a psychiatric evaluation; Derr's lawyer also said she "had trouble communicating with him." Given that he was living in a group home for the mentally ill, Derr may not be found fit enough to stand trial. The baby, Isabelle Avins, is out of the hospital and doing better, considering.
Photograph from the NY Post
