A woman accused of killing her son after force-feeding him with salt, simply wanted attention.

Lacey Spears was charged of depraved murder and manslaughter for the 2014 death of her 5-year-old son Garnett Paul Spears. 

The prosecution, in its closing arguments on Thursday, claimed the 27-year-old mother enjoyed the attention she was getting because of her sick child.  

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The woman was believed to have force-fed her son with salt using a stomach tube. 

The prosecution said the defendant intended to kill her son for fears he might tell people that his mother was making him sick.

"The motive is bizarre, the notion is scary, but it exists ... She apparently craved the attention of her family, her friends, her co-workers and most particularly the medical profession," Assistant District Attorney Patricia Murphy said.

Murphy said Spears pretended to be a caring mother, an image she had shown many to gain sympathy.  

She blogged about her son's declining health through social media. 

Spears kept followers updated of her son's medical condition, writing about his doctor and hospital visits. 

She announced the death of her son in January 23, 2014 with a post that said: "Garnett the Great journeyed onward today at 10:20 a.m."

But Murphy called Spear's acts as "nothing short of torture". 

Doctors discovered dangerous levels of sodium in the child's body, which led to the swelling of his brain, seizure and eventually death. 

The Westchester County medical examiner ruled the death a homicide and authorities suspected Spears had been feeding her son with salt through a tube.

This was further backed up by the fact that Spears asked a neighbor to get rid of feeding tubes in her house and never tell anyone about it. 

A forensic expert had testified that the feeding bag found in Spears' home contained an equivalent of nearly 70 packets of McDonald's salt.

The defense team which had been facing an uphill battle earlier claimed the hospital was to blame for the death of the child.

Defense lawyer Stephen Riebling described Spears as a devoted mother.

"She loves her son very much. She cared deeply if he lived or died," said Riebling, adding that Spears collapsed when she learned of her child's death.

Riebling said hospital charts and a video showed the nurse attending to the child failed to replace the fluid given to Garnett to keep him hydrated. 

Riebling also noted a doctor's earlier testimony that dehydration can lead to high salt levels in the body.

The defense team did not opt to use Munchausen by proxy as Spear's defense.  

Munchausen by proxy is a disorder where caregivers intentionally but secretly hurt children and enjoy the attention they receive. Some said Spears may have that disorder.

Some legal observers said this could help in Spears defense to at least bring down the charges to a lesser offense.

Spears, if found guilty of depraved murder and manslaughter charges, may be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

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