An entrance into Fort Eisenhower, Ga. (Corey Dickstein/Stars and Stripes)

A Fort Eisenhower soldier’s wife who is charged with killing her infant son with a knife intends to use an insanity defense during her upcoming trial, according to court records filed in Georgia federal court.

April Evalyn Short, 31, is charged with premeditated murder and felony murder in the Nov. 15 death of the 11-month-old boy, according to court records in the Southern District of Georgia. She lived in a home at Fort Eisenhower, near Augusta, where Short’s husband, Staff Sgt. James Short worked as a drill sergeant, according to base officials.

April Short pleaded not guilty in May, and her attorney filed notice last week of intent to use a defense of insanity at the time of the child’s death. Her attorney, Pete Theodocion, wrote he will introduce expert evidence during the trial of a “mental disease or defect bearing on both the issue of guilt and the issue of punishment in a capital case.”

Theodocion did immediately respond to a request for comment. A trial date has not yet been scheduled.

Court records show Short sent a text message to her husband at about 8:01 a.m. on Nov. 15 that said, “The days of darkness are upon us.” He rushed home and found her barricaded in the primary bedroom with the couple’s three children. The two elder children were 11 and 6 years old at the time.

James Short called 911 and soon after police arrived April Short exited the room with the two older children and attempted to flee in a vehicle, according to court documents. One police officer attempted to stop her and was partially in the vehicle as the woman began driving away with her children in the back seat. The officer drew his weapon, and she stopped driving.

Police arrested April Short and began to look for the infant. The boy was found in the bathroom bleeding from his neck and wrapped in a shower curtain. He was taken to Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center and pronounced dead at 9:34 a.m.

During interviews of the other two older children, they told police that their mother cut the baby’s neck so he could “be with Jesus and God.” She also threatened to cut the 6-year-old if the child didn’t stop crying, according to court documents.

April Short told investigators that she knew what she did, and it was “wrong” and “evil.”

Soon after her arrest, the court ordered the woman undergo a psychiatric evaluation, and she was admitted in December to Federal Medical Center, Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas. April Short exhibited worrisome symptoms upon arrival and stabilized once she began taking medication regularly, according to a report of the examination.

She expressed an understanding of her situation and could identify the roles of everyone involved in the case, and therefore, was deemed competent to stand trial.