Maryland Mother Accused of Slashing 3-Year-Old Daughter's Throat, Turning Scissors On Herself

A Maryland woman has been accused of attempted murder by slashing her 3-year-old daughter's throat with scissors and turning the sharp tool on herself, police said Monday.

Anne Catherine Akers, 28, of Montgomery County, has been charged with attempted second-degree murder, first-degree assault and first-degree child abuse after police found her and her daughter with slashed necks on Saturday.

According to the Montgomery County Department of Police, officers responded to a call at 10:50 a.m. March 27 after Akers' father found blood on the floor of her home.

Hours before the attack was discovered, Akers' father tried to get into the home, but investigators said Akers had changed the locks over the weekend, WUSA9 reported.

After calling a locksmith and finally gaining entrance to the home, Akers' father said he saw the blood on the ground and immediately called police.

When they arrived, police found Akers on a bedroom floor with blood and a pair of scissors, suffering from a neck laceration. Under a blanket she was holding, police said Akers' 3-year-old daughter was also bleeding from a life-threatening neck wound.

Officers said they immediately began lifesaving measures on the child before emergency personnel arrived and took Akers to a local hospital with serious injuries.

A Maryland State Police helicopter transported Akers' daughter to a local hospital for treatment. At the hospital, physicians who treated the child told detectives that she likely would have died without the officer's swift actions.

Montgomery County State's Attorney John McCarthy echoed that statement on Monday, according to WUSA9.

"If not for the intervention of the grandfather of this child and the police officers who gave emergency medical attention this child would have died," McCarthy said.

"Some people stepped up and did the right thing. This child is alive because of that," he added.

Akers is being held without bond. On Monday, a Maryland judge ordered Akers to meet with a psychiatrist to see if she is mentally fit to stand trial for murder.

Pending the evaluation, Akers is scheduled to appear in court again on April 5. According to NBC News, it is unclear whether or not Akers has an attorney.

Though McCarthy is moving forward with charges of attempted second-degree murder, assault and child abuse, he said Monday that the psychiatric evaluation was "totally appropriate," WUSA9 reported.

Newsweek contacted the Montgomery County Department of Police for additional comment but did not hear back in time for publication.