Distinguishing the endanger by the mother of a newborn child that caused the death of the child from related criminal offenses by signs of the subjective part

The article deals with the judicial practice of the qualification of leaving a newborn child in danger by the mother, which caused the death of this child. It has been established that there are no uniform approaches to determining whether the mother has a condition caused by childbirth, since the conclusions of a complex forensic psychological and psychiatric examination do not always give a clear answer to this question. Analysis of court verdicts under Art. 117, ch. 2, 3 Art. 135 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine indicates that it is not mandatory to appoint a complex forensic psychological and psychiatric examination for this category of criminal proceedings, which does not contribute to proving the circumstances that affect the degree of severity of the committed criminal offense, and allows to distinguish the components of the specified criminal offenses. In the case of leaving a newborn child in danger by the mother, if the mother was not in a state determined by childbirth, which caused the death of this child, the subjective part consists only in the direct intention of the act. The mental attitude of the mother to the death of her newborn child when left in danger is characterized by criminal wrongful self-confidence or criminal wrongful negligence. If the mother has an indirect intention to cause the death of her newborn child, her actions must be qualified according to clause 2, part 2 of Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. It is proposed to enshrine in the conclusion of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Ukraine the provision according to which the intentional killing by the mother of her newborn child should be qualified under Art. 117 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, if it is committed in the presence of a special mental and physical condition of a woman, which reduces her ability to manage her actions during childbirth or immediately after it