"As a mother who loved her child she engaged in what is called altruistic suicide filicide," said defense attorney Alan Dershowitz.
Little Jude Mirra, who was autistic, was found lifeless in a posh suite at the Penninsula Hotel back in February of 2010. His mother says she had then tried to commit suicide.
"She inevitably had to choose between horrible evils, that is a lifetime of abuse of her son or painless death," Dershowitz said.
She reportedly felt justified in killing Jude to save him from people she feared.
"A mother who loved her child was forced by desperate circumstances into a situation of choosing what she regarded as a lesser evil," Dershowitz said.
"This woman knew exactly what she was doing, and she was acting in the greater good for this child. Do I think it will fly? Absolutely not," said legal expert David Schwartz.
Schwartz, a former prosecutor in Brooklyn and now a defense counsel, not with this case, also believes it's not been used without an insanity defense. And Jordan's attorneys say she is sane.
"She has a mild neurosis. There is absolutely no thought disorder," said Defense Attorney Ron Kuby.
The judge though will decide whether that defense is allowed.
Not so Gigi Jordan learned when the judge decided she will not be released on bail after spending 18 months in jail since the murder. Her attorney's offered 24-hour in-home armed guards and a six-million-dollar bail and bond package to no avail.
"He obviously wants to keep Ms. Jordan in jail. He thinks it's appropriate that she should start to serve her sentence now. And he intends to keep her in jail," said Kuby.
