A mother jointly accused of killing her baby daughter explained how her joy at becoming a parent soon turned into a nightmare.

And in Supreme Court yesterday Maatkai Hatsheput Tamerry pointed the finger at a paediatrician for failing to identify problems her baby was having feeding.

Tamerry, 36 and her husband, Dr. Amenemhat Waset Amen-Ra Tamerry, 48, are charged with unlawfully killing their ten-month-old daughter, A?Maya, who died in March, 2001.

Before questioning his client on the stand yesterday, defence lawyer Mark Pettingill told the jury : ?This is a tragedy, not a crime.

?You may well conclude that they (defendants) made mistakes but they are not criminals. If you have doubts about guilt then you always have to execute those doubts in favour of the defendants.?

A visibly shaken and often tearful Tamerry told the court how she had ?desperately? wanted a child and felt ?blessed? to have had one. She said that she had a happy pregnancy and that her husband was ?150 percent supportive?.

But problems began when Tamerry met with paediatrician Dr. Alexander Barron on May 8 2000, a few days

after A?Maya?s birth.

Tamerry described the meeting as ?cold? and told the court that Dr. Baron never checked to make sure she was breast feeding properly.

She added that when Dr. Barron recommended feeding the baby formula, she said she wanted to breast feed and wanted to feed A?Maya all natural foods and nothing ?synthetic?.

Tamerry said that, after discussing the breast-feeding problem with her family, she made an appointment with the Government clinic where the problem was solved.

The mother told the court that on May 22, the family returned to Dr. Barron to tell him they had fixed the breast feeding problem. Tamerry said Dr. Barron talked about formula on that visit, but that she told him that she wanted more time to work on breast feeding. Some time after that, Child and Family Services became involved following a complainant of ?abuse? by Dr. Barron.

At the beginning of June 2000 Police turned up at Tamerry?s mother?s house with a care order to seize A?Maya. The mother said she asked the Police why they had come to take her child and they said Dr. Barron reported that he had only seen A?Maya once ? a fact Tamerry disputed.

The couple and their child were escorted to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital where Police were told by paediatrician Dr. Roddy Moore that he had began seeing A?Maya and was due to see her again very soon. The mother said that while at the hospital A?Maya never saw a doctor and was allowed to go home after hanging up the phone with Dr. Moore.

Tamerry told the court the whole episode made her physically sick, and caused lack of sleep. She told the court: ?I could not believe it. We loved her.?

Tamerry said that, in a subsequent appointment with Dr. Moore, she had explained that she was supplementing her daughter?s diet of breast milk with Irish moss, also known as sea moss. She said that Dr. Moore advised her against this and she took his advice.

When asked why she had been feeding A?Maya Irish moss, Tamerry said she had been introduced to the supplement by other mothers and her father. She said she drank the mixture herself because she is lactose intolerant.

The court heard that Dr. Moore left the Island in June and referred the Tamerry?s to Dr. June Hill, who subsequently saw A?Maya on a number of occasions for the next three months.

But Tamerry admitted to the court that she failed to make an appointment with Dr. Hill in September because her daughter was doing so well.

The mother told the court that she knew A?Maya was small but pointed out that she herself is small and her husband is small for a man his height.

Also during yesterday?s proceedings, statements made by the accused couple to Police shortly after A?Maya?s death were read out.

In her statement Maatkai Hatsheput Tamerry admitted to breast feeding A?Maya and not giving any solids, but would not comment on any other intake the child received. She only answered a handful of questions throughout the Police interview.

The mother also said it was not true that the first paediatrician to see A?Maya, Dr. Alexander Barron, warned her that her daughter would die if she did not gain weight.

And she told Police that her daughter had started to say the alphabet, was healthy, and growing well.

When asked in the interview if she was concerned the child was not gaining weight the mother replied: ?No, she was always small.?

According to his statement, Amenemhat Waset Amen-Ra Tamerry told Police that he was not aware that his daughter had suffered from any problems at birth although he did point out that, shortly before her death, she was teething, which caused her to cry a lot.

The father also said A?Maya was a very ?alert little girl? and that the two of them had a lot of fun together.

Also during yesterday?s proceedings, Mr. Pettingill completed his cross examination of forensic pathologist, Dr. John Obafunwa who confirmed that a child would become fussy and irritable while teething.

On re-examination by Director of Public Prosecutions Kulandra Ratneser Dr. Obafunwa also confirmed that he would expect anyone who cares for the child to notice a breathing problem. In earlier testimony the court heard A?Maya had pneumonia at the time of her death.

A photograph taken at autopsy of A?Maya?s vaginal opening was shown to Dr. Obafunwa who pointed out where the discoloration and rash were. In earlier testimony that court heard that A?Maya had yeast infection present throughout her body.

The mothers testimony will continue on Monday in front of Chief Justice Richard Ground.