Lakewood mother found not guilty by insanity in daughters’ murder

A Lakewood, New Jersey, mother accused of murdering her two young daughters, aged 1 and 3, has been found not guilty by reason of insanity after a swift 90-minute trial. Naomi Elkins, 27, will now face two life sentences in a psychiatric facility rather than prison, with her mental health subject to regular court evaluations; she will remain committed unless she is eventually deemed no longer a threat to herself or others. The tragedy unfolded on Tuesday when police responded to a call at a Shenandoah Drive residence around 4:50 p.m., discovering the unconscious girls, who were pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities determined that Elkins drowned both children, with the 1-year-old also suffering stab wounds, leading to her arrest on charges of murder, unlawful weapon possession, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

The case stunned the tight-knit Lakewood community, prompting an outpouring of grief and support. Yehoshua Brodsky, director of family services for Chai Lifeline, described the incident as unprecedented, noting that the organization deployed its crisis and bereavement team to assist not only the immediate neighborhood but the broader community as well. Elkins made a brief virtual appearance in an Ocean County courtroom the following day, where details of her mental state began to emerge. A relative, in a letter shared via "The Lakewood Scoop," revealed that Elkins had a documented history of psychosis, though she had shown improvement in the year leading up to the killings. The relative expressed profound sorrow, stating that the mother appeared to suffer a sudden psychotic break with no prior indicators, calling it an "unthinkable act" that left the family reeling.

The ruling shifts the focus from punishment to treatment, reflecting the court’s recognition of Elkins’s severe mental illness as the driving factor behind the deaths of her daughters at The Woods residence. The community continues to grapple with the heartbreak of losing two young lives in such harrowing circumstances.