A Yonkers mother is coming to the defense of her daughter who has been charged with attempting to kidnap a toddler from a local hospital.

Liam, an 18-month old, has been staying at his grandmother's house in Yonkers for months because his mother, Laysha Machado, is behind bars at the Westchester County Jail.  

Machado was indicted by a grand jury and charged with attempting to kidnap a toddler in a stroller from Saint Joseph's Hospital.

"She made a mistake! Yes it was a terrible horrible mistake. but she wasn't in her right mind, she has a mental illness,” says Zaida Salamanca, the suspect's mother.

Salamanca says her daughter has been battling schizophrenia and bipolar disorder for four years. She says Machado was having a schizophrenic "episode" at Saint Joseph's emergency room back on Feb. 15 when she mistook a 2-year-old male child in a stroller for her son, Liam.        

Machado fled the building. A hospital security guard chased after her and held her until police arrived.

Salamanca says her daughter fled out of fear.

"She's scared. She's terrified of the hospital, because she's been in the mental ward so many times,” says Salamanca.

Salamanca is praying her daughter gets some kind of leniency from authorities.

She says Machado has been arrested before for trespassing.

Machado is due back in court next month. She is also charged with unlawful imprisonment and endangering the welfare of a child.