WORCESTER, Mass. — Friday marked day four of the trial for Erika Murray, the Blackstone mother accused in the deaths of two of her babies.
Murray was seen tearing up at least one time in court Friday as she had to look at pictures of her three infant's corpses. But she remained stoic watching her initial interviews with detectives where she told them she gave birth to five of her seven children by herself in her bathroom, hiding them from her two older children and live-in boyfriend.
"Nobody on the face of this earth knew these kids existed?" "Not until recently."
Previous:
Trial day 1: Trial opens for woman charged with murder in babies' deaths
Trial day 2: DCF, police, board of health testify in Erika Murray trial
Trial day 3: Forensic investigators testify about bodies found in Blackstone home
Murray says her boyfriend, 10-year-old and 15-year-old never asked about the 3-month-old and 5-month-old living in the feces-filled bedroom until a few weeks before her 2014 arrest.
"I just said I was babysitting," Murray said.
They also never asked about the smell coming from three infant corpses hidden in her children's closets.
"Somewhere between 2004 and 2010, you had three more children?"
"Yes," Murray said.
But Murray couldn't recall when each of those children were born or if they were a boy or girl.
"Did those children all die at birth?
"Yes," she replied.
"None of them lived?"
"No," she said.
But Murray later changed her story saying one baby may have lived longer.
"Baby lived to one-week-old."
Murray never gave that child a name.
For the first time in the trial that's so far spanned four days, Murray wiped a tear from her eye when looking at pictures of the infant's decomposed bodies.
"Why did you put the body in the closet?"
"Panic," Murray said.
Murray's defense says she has a mental illness and was not away how bad conditions were inside her home.
On Friday, the defense asked very few questions in rebuttal.
Court resumes at 10 a.m. on Monday.
Related:
[ Blackstone mother indicted on 2 counts of murder ]
[ Young children in Blackstone home in 'deplorable' state ]