Mia McQuillin, 18, is accused of throwing her newborn child – which still had its umbilical cord attached – out of the window of an Ibis Styles Hotel in the French capital on Monday
The American student charged with ‘child homicide’ in France after allegedly throwing her baby out of a Paris hotel window has been moved to a secure psychiatric unit.
Mia McQuillin, 18, was on Thursday out of formal police custody and in a specialist care unit. She was arrested on Monday in her second floor room at the Ibis Styles Hotel in the French capital’s 20th arrondissement after a newborn was found on the street below. The child still had ‘the umbilical cord’ attached and was wrapped in a single sheet.
Passers-by saw the baby lying on the pavement, and noticed the hotel window open 30ft above, while calling police. Despite efforts at revival, the baby was declared dead at the nearby Robert Debré Hospital, where Ms McQuillin was also operated on.
There were fears that Ms McQuillin may have been suffering from ‘pregnancy denial’ after giving birth unexpectedly, according to investigators.
A prosecuting source told Le Parisien newspaper: ‘Three days after being taken into custody’ the suspect was ‘taken to the psychiatric infirmary of Police Headquarters.’ The unit ‘takes in patients who are dangerous to public safety due to potential psychiatric disorders,’ the news outlet added.
Ms McQuillin is a gap-year student from Bend, Oregon, and was travelling with a party of fellow Americans around Europe. All of them are being interviewed by detectives, along with trip coordinators, according to the investigating source. Members of Ms McQuillin’s family are also expected to travel from the USA to support her.
A criminal enquiry for ‘child homicide’ has been launched by Paris prosecutors, supported by judicial police and a specialised child protection unit.
“The investigation is ongoing and the precise circumstances of this tragedy are still to be established,” said another investigating source.
The Ibis Styles three-star budget hotel, where rooms cost around £100 a night, remained open on Thursday.
