The attorney representing a West Penn Township woman who in October told police she found herself starting to drown her month-old daughter because she "just couldn't deal with it" has asked the court to dismiss all charges against her.

Rachel M. Foose, 33, is charged with attempted first-degree murder, attempted third-degree murder, aggravated assault, simple assault, endangering the welfare of children and recklessly endangering another person.In documents filed with the Schuylkill County Clerk of Courts, defense attorney Frederick J. Fanelli argued that the charges should be dismissed because Foose voluntarily stopped herself from drowning the infant. The baby was not injured, he wrote, and further, the charges were filed solely on the basis of Foose's own statements.Judge Jacqueline L. Russell will wait to rule on the request until she considers all of the arguments from both defense and prosecution.Russell agreed to give Assistant District Attorney David J. Rice an additional seven days to submit written arguments. He's already submitted as evidence the transcript of a Nov. 13, 2015 preliminary hearing which found sufficient evidence against Foose.Fanelli also attached the transcript to his own arguments.Foose attended the hearing before Russell on Tuesday, but did not speak.According to court documents and testimony at the preliminary hearing, the baby's paternal grandmother, Charlene Belzner, of Andreas, stopped West Penn Township Police Chief Brian Johnson as he was leaving the station on Oct. 23 to tell him Foose had tried to drown the baby.Johnson went to Foose's house on Golf Road. Seeing her sitting on the porch, he spoke with her."I tried to drown my baby," she told him. "I filled the tub up with water and tried to drown my baby."Foose told Johnson, "I just can't deal with it," according to the court documents and testimony.Her husband and the baby's father, Mark C. Foose, took the baby to his mother's house.Johnson said Foose showed no emotion as she was talking to him.He arrested her and then took photos of the bathtub filled with water.West Penn Ambulance paramedics examined the baby and determined that she was breathing and behaving normally.The baby was then was taken to St. Luke's Hospital-Miners Campus in Coaldale for further examination.Mark Foose told police that when he returned from a trip to a drug store for formula his wife was standing in the living room holding the baby.Rachel Foose handed him the baby and told him she just tried to drown her, and that he should call 911.Mark Foose said the baby was soaked and the bathtub was full, according to the court documents and testimony.Belzner said Rachel Foose's mother called her to say that Rachel tried to kill the baby.Belzner said when she went to the house, she found Rachel Foose standing in the driveway. Rachel told her she had held the baby's head under the water in the bathtub.Belzner said Rachel Foose told her that the Children and Youth Services agency was going to take the baby from her, so she tried to kill the her.Foose remains free on $100,000 unsecured bail. At the preliminary hearing on Nov. 13, District Judge James R. Ferrier of Orwigsburg set bail at $500,000 straight cash.However, Senior Judge D. Michael Stine reduced that to the $100,000 unsecured.