© REUTERS/WESTCHESTER COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE/HANDOUT VIA REUTERSLacey Spears, 28, is seen in an undated photo from the Westchester County District Attorney's Office in Westchester, New York.
A 26-year-old mother was arrested and charged with the murder of her 5-year-old son on Tuesday, accused by the Westchester County authorities of systematically making the boy sick and ultimately fatally poisoning him in January with an overdose of sodium.
Investigators said they believe the woman, Lacey Spears, may suffer from Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a rare mental illness that often involves a mother either causing or inventing health symptoms so that her child gets medical attention.
Her case has attracted widespread attention because, for years, Ms. Lacey chronicled her child's illnesses on social media and a personal blog.
Ms. Lacey pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday and her lawyer did not respond to calls seeking comment.
The indictment does not mention the syndrome, but instead details a pattern of behavior over the course of the boy's short life that would be consistent with the illness.
The charges do not accuse her of intentionally killing her son, Garnett, but of depraved indifference that led to his death.
A Westchester County assistant district attorney, Doreen Lloyd, said that investigators had found evidence on Ms. Lacey's computer that the mother had searched for the effects that increased doses of salt could have. "This mother was intentionally feeding her son salt in toxic levels," Ms. Lloyd said during a court appearance on Tuesday.
The charges specifically relate to the events at two hospitals that led up to the death of the boy.
On Jan. 17, Ms. Lacey rushed Garnett to the Nyack Hospital, reporting that he had been experiencing seizures, according to court records. His mother spent the entire time by his side.
On Jan. 19, Garnett's sodium levels spiked dangerously, for no apparent medical reason, and he was airlifted to Westchester Medical Center, according to court documents.
Two days later, he was barely breathing, his pupils were blown and his skin was a pale gray color. Garnett died on Jan. 23. Throughout the ordeal, as she had for years, Ms. Lacey provided Internet updates to the world. And when the medical examiner declared Garnett's death a homicide in April, there was an immediate reaction online.
Her followers felt betrayed. Even as prosecutors built their case against her, Ms. Lacey's behavior was widely debated.
The Journal News ran a five-part series on the case, exploring in part how Ms. Lacey's story would not seem strange in the over-sharing age of Twitter.
Life imitates Art? Or has this become a common practice these days, so Hollywood is merely reflecting our chosen reality back in our faces? Wasn't this the plotline of that film "The 6th Sense"? Maybe this 'mom' watches too much tv? It can be addicting if you are the addictive type.