Woman charged with killing 4-year-old son to spend life in mental institution

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) – A Milwaukee woman charged with killing her 4-year-old son in September 2017 will spend the rest of her life in a mental institution.

On Friday, a judge in Milwaukee County Court committed Amelia Distasio to a mental institution.  A psychologist testified that Distasio is mentally ill and was suffering from the illness at the time of her son’s death.

According to court documents, Distasio tied her son up and set him on fire in a bathtub in 2017. On Friday in court, the psychologist said that Distasio told her she believed her son was a cannibal or vampire and was going to kill her.

The judge ruled that at the time of the crime, Distasio couldn’t tell right from wrong. She will be sent to Winnebago Mental Health Institute.