So all of Caroline's friends and relatives were primed to say how normal she was before the

So all of Caroline's friends and relatives were primed to say how normal she was before the baby's birth. But postnatal psychosis hardly ever kicks in during the first 24 hours of a baby's life. Even Kumar's book says that."So now they've suddenly changed tack. "That victory has already forced the defence to make mistakes.

They started by saying Caroline was suffering from postnatal psychosis, just like Ann Green. It was the only time a postnatal psychosis defence has been used successfully in a New York state murder trial."I think the Ann Green case went to Michael's head," says Marjory Fisher. Mr Dowd argued that Ms Green was not responsible for her actions because she was suffering from a psychotic form of postnatal depression The jury believed him. Ms Green smothered her first child in 1980 and her second baby two years later, but the deaths were not considered suspicious until she tried to kill her third child. He was found guilty of professional misconduct and suspended for five years.

Mr Dowd avoided unemployment because his old friend Mario Cuomo had become New York's governor. Mr Cuomo found him a job in the Office to Prevent Domestic Violence.One of Mr Dowd's last cases before his suspension is still his most famous He won an acquittal for Ann Green, a paediatric nurse. But in 1990 the courts decided he had waited too long before making his confession. In the resulting scandal, the Queens borough president committed suicide and Ed Koch, the New York mayor, was booted out of office.Mr Dowd was promised immunity from prosecution.

In 1983, he defended four self-confessed members of the IRA against charges of gun-running. But in 1990 he got too close to the flames.Mr Dowd had supplemented his legal practice with a small business called Computrace, which collected parking fines on behalf of Queens County, for a commission. In 1982, Mr Dowd agreed reluctantly to pay bribes to city officials in return for a city contract reputed to be worth $1.6m. Mr Dowd and his partner paid corrupt officials a total of $30,000 over two years but then decided they had had enough. When I play that card, her career will come crashing down like a crystal chandelier."Mr Dowd has warmed his feet by the fire of New York politics for more than 15 years In 1977, he worked on Mario Cuomo's campaign for mayor.