Krista Brunecz: Woman found not guilty by reason of insanity asks judge for new counsel and resumption of parental rights
The mother was found to be suffering from postpartum psychosis when she stabbed her 3-month old infant to death in 2022.
A woman from Weston, West Virginia who was found not guilty by reason of insanity in 2024 for the stabbing death of her infant has requested to assigned counsel.
Krista Brunecz was 32 when, according to a criminal complaint, police responded to a 911 call in the early morning hours of Dec. 30, 2022.
Upon entering, two women were inside. One sat on the couch, covered in blood, while the other knelt on the floor, holding the body of a lifeless infant.
Brunecz and the baby were rushed to hospital, where the infant was pronounced dead, WV News says. The baby succumbed to fatal stab wounds, while Brunecz was treated for self-inflicted stab wounds.
When the nurse practitioner asked Brunecz what happened, Brunecz allegedly stated that she had “stabbed her baby, then herself.”
The infant’s father told the West Virginia Metro News that Brunecz had been suffering from postpartum psychosis since having the baby. They had planned to move the week the infant died, and Brunecz visited her doctor the day before, leaving with a prescription medication for depression and anxiety.
He added that six days before the murder, Brunecz wasn’t acting like herself.
“She wasn’t the same person I knew. She was slipping into a very dark place. She was hearing voices. She couldn’t sleep. She knew something was wrong,” he told the outlet.
An indictment came down for Brunecz on July 10, 2023, West Virginia Metro News previously reported.
SAAR Psychological Group PLLC conducted an evaluation on Brunecz. At the Jan. 3 hearing, Prosecutor Christina Flanigan didn’t disagree with the ruling that Brunecz was competent to stand trial. Yet she requested a second psychologist, Fremouw, Sigley & Baker Psychological Associates of Morgantown, to determine criminal responsibility, to which Brunecz’s attorney at the time, Phil Davis, objected.
Brunecz was found not guilty by reason of insanity on January 17, 2024, according to WV News. She has been in a Clarksburg psychiatric hospital for the past 14 months.
“I’m asking you and letting you know that the whole 14 months I’ve been here at [Highland Clarksburg Hospital’s Forensic Unit, I’ve] not had a lawyer,” she wrote to the court.
She added that she has been informed her former lawyers no longer represent her. The letter was filed on March 5, 2025 to Lewis/Upshur Circuit Judge Kurt W. Hall, WV News notes. Brunecz is asking for a new lawyer to represent her while she continues her treatment at the hospital.
She didn’t explain why she wanted a new lawyer, but WV News reveals that she filed another letter with the court requesting a resumption of at least partial parental rights.
In a 12 month update, statewide forensic clinical director Dr. Colleen M. Lillard sent a letter on Jan. 16, 2025 to Hall which said “there are currently no plans or recommendations for a less restrictive level of care, and continued inpatient management is recommended.”
Lillard also noted that Brunecz is “in full remission due to a controlled environment.”
Sources
WV News