Wife of Etan Patz Suspect Speaks Out

The wife of the man who’s confessed to killing a New York City boy in 1979 says he has been mentally ill for years.

Rosemary Hernandez told the Daily News through her attorney that Pedro Hernandez has “suffered from delusions.” Police say Hernandez told them he strangled Etan Patz.

Attorney Robert Gottlieb says Hernandez’s wife wants the prosecutor to understand the severity of his mental illness. The DA has yet to bring the case to a grand jury.

Gottlieb says police have repeatedly tried to question Rosemary Hernandez since her husband’s arrest outside their Camden, N.J., home last month.

The lawyer says she fully cooperated when he was arrested and now feels harassed.  Police are working to corroborate Pedro Hernandez’s claims. His lawyer says he’s schizophrenic.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)