The father who was convicted of the manslaughter of his ten-month-old daughter asked yesterday that all punishment be passed to him, leaving his wife blameless.

Amenemhat Waset AmenRa Tamerry, formerly Clark Godwin, wrote a letter to Chief Justice Richard Ground pleading for mercy for his wife, Maatkai Hatsheput Tamerry, formerly Regina Woods. Tamerry, 48, and his wife, 36, were found guilty in June of the manslaughter of their baby daughter, A-Maya.

A-Maya, in a severe state of dehydration and malnutrition, died in hospital on March 1, 2001, exactly ten months after she was born on May 1, 2000.

“In essence, Dr. Tamerry asks that there be no sentence imposed on his wife, and what would be imposed on her be imposed on him,” Mr. Justice Ground said as copies of the letter were given to lawyers during the sentencing of the Tamerrys in Supreme Court yesterday.

“While I sympathise strongly with his sentiments, that is probably not a course which is open to me.”

The Tamerrys will have to wait until Monday before finding out what their sentence will be after Mr. Justice Ground adjourned their sentencing yesterday afternoon.

The adjournment came after delays to the start of the sentencing yesterday morning due to Divorce Court. Though Crown counsel Shakira Dill kept the Crown's submission regarding sentencing short - just under half an hour - submissions from defence lawyers Darrell Clarke (representing the baby's father) and Elizabeth Christopher (representing A-Maya's mother) took longer, leading Chief Justice Richard Ground to announce at 3.30 p.m. that he would not be passing sentence yesterday.

Instead, he will pass down the sentence at 10 a.m. on Monday in Supreme Court Two.

The courtroom yesterday was overflowing with family and friends of the Tamerrys, as well as Police officers, reporters, and witnesses from the trial - including pathologist Dr. John Obafunwa, whose testimony regarding the state of baby A-Maya was so emotive that the child's mother elected not to sit through it.

The Tamerrys waved and smiled as they entered the courtroom yesterday morning, and sat close to one another in the dock during the proceedings.

“The Crown makes no distinction in the culpability of either defendant,” Ms Dill told the court. “The acts of these defendants resulted in great pain and suffering, resulting in the death of their infant daughter.”

The fact that the parents were “not uneducated”, that the father was medically trained, and that they and did not lack access to helping services if they were having problems with their daughter only added to their culpability, she said.

A social inquiry report showed a high likelihood of the father re-offending, Ms Dill said, and suggested that the mother was suffering from post-natal depression, among other things.

Citing cases where sentences of five years and ten years were handed down, Ms Dill said the maximum sentence for the crime was life-imprisonment. She agreed that both defendants needed psychiatric treatment, but maintained that treatment could be received in prison.

Lawyer Darrell Clarke spoke on behalf of A-Maya's father.

Noting that the trial was highly publicised in the media, he made reference to the perceptions of the author of the social inquiry report regarding the father.

“Are you suggesting the author of the social inquiry report was biased by public reports?” asked Mr. Justice Ground.

“No,” replied Mr. Clarke. “I am saying you need to consider that.”

Later calling the defendants “fodder for The Royal Gazette”, he submitted that the author of the social inquiry report was influenced by the “very judgmental and biased” media reports.

The conclusion to the social inquiry report, read to the court by Mr. Justice Ground, stated the child was “denied timely medical care which could have saved her life”, and finished: “His (the father's) beliefs guided his choices, contributing to his daughter's death. He must now face the consequences.”

That conclusion was “not necessary”, Mr. Clarke said.

However Mr. Justice Ground replied: “There has to be some explanation why she was not taken to medical care. ... This was an issue at trial which troubled us all. The child just dropped off the map.”

“My clients have suffered enough,” Mr. Clarke said. “They have endured a trial, they've had to endure being subjected to being fodder for The Royal Gazette and the Press for years now. Their daughter is gone, and nothing can bring her back.

“And the worst thing about it is, when they do come out of jail, if they go to jail, they still have to live with this. Bermuda is a small community. And they're going to suffer this stigma for the rest of their lives.

“I am asking you to pose as lenient a sentence as possible,” he finished, citing the Tamerrys' good character and role in the community, as well as their love for their daughter. Mr. Justice Ground agreed none of those were in dispute. Mr. Clarke suggested two or three years imprisonment for Dr. Tamerry.

Lawyer Elizabeth Christopher spoke on behalf of A-Maya's mother.

“My client has tried to come to terms with getting insight to what happened with respect to her daughter,” she said.

There are provisions in law for the effects of post-natal depression, she said, and doctors agreed that she was suffering from a depressive illness.

That may have affected her ability to make decisions, leaving her “overwhelmed and helpless”, Ms Christopher said.

Though the mother was gaining “insight” into what had happened to her daughter before the trial, Mr. Justice Ground said by the time of the trial that insight appeared to have disappeared, with Tamerry blaming doctors for much of what happened. Ms Christopher cited psychiatric reports which showed that, while on medication and receiving treatment, Tamerry was better able to deal with the issue, however she resisted treatment.

Her client still has not fully processed what happened, Ms Christopher said, and her evidence at trial showed that.

“It is not a lack of remorse, I think there has to be some work done in taking her to a place where she has full insight.”

However Mr. Justice Ground said later that there had not been “the slightest hint” of medical evidence relating to A-Maya's mother at trial.

Calling for systematic changes, Ms Christopher suggested a probation order be given to her client, with psychiatric treatment one of the conditions. Though she said Tamerry was not a danger to society, Mr. Justice Ground replied: “No, but I think she may be a danger to herself.”

Ms Christopher continued to call on Mr. Justice Ground to use the option of alternatives to incarceration, noting that her client had a low likelihood of re-offending as she will never conceive another child.

Like Mr. Clarke, Ms Christopher emphasised the good character and community involvement of her client.

Both the Tamerrys were given the option of speaking to the court.

“According to Mr. Griffith, a British author of a book ‘Politics of the Judiciary', British common law is inherently biased and the framework of the British legal system is inherently biased towards people of non-European descent,” A-Maya's father told Mr. Justice Ground. “I would like you to take that into consideration.”

A-Maya's mother, however, said only: “I submit to whatever the court ...” before taking her seat again.

The sentence will be passed on Monday at 10 a.m.