A Naperville mother saw a “black shadow” and thought her 7-year-old son and the 5-year-old she was babysitting in 2012 were being possessed by the devil when she fatally stabbed them, a psychiatrist testified Wednesday, according to a report.
The Naperville Sun reports, citing the expert’s testimony, Elzbieta Plackwoska was in a psychotic state when the children, Justin Plackowska and Olivia Dworakowski, were killed.
"Ms. Plackowska had a psychotic belief that devils had entered Olivia and Justin and that by taking their lives, she was allowing the children to enter heaven," Resnick said, according to the Sun.
A mixed breed named Niki and a dachshund named Tootsie were also found dead at the scene.
Plackowska's attorneys are reportedly building a defense around her alleged insanity but DuPage County prosecutors were quick to push back. Prosecutors say Plackowska was aware of what she was doing when she stabbed the kids more than 100 times five years ago, the newspaper reports.
But the psychiatrist, Dr. Phillip Resnick, says the shadow she saw told her to “kill them, kill them,” according to the Sun.
"You are going to be the last one," she reportedly heard from the shadow. "You are going to die, but you will be the last one."
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Resnick said Plackowska’s father’s death in Poland weeks before the violent deaths of the children was an inciting incident to Plackowska’s psychotic episode. He said several people mentioned Plackowska was acting strange and mentioned “devils” before the killings, according to the Sun.
Resnick will testify again Thursday after four hours on the stand Wednesday.
