Yates' Ex 'Very Happy' For Her

Glad Fate Of Andrea, Who Drowned Their Kids, Being Reconsidered

(CBS)  Rusty Yates, whose ex-wife, Andrea, drowned their five children in a bathtub in 2001, says he's "very happy" that she may get a new trial or be allowed to plead insanity.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals refused on Wednesday to reconsider a lower court ruling that overturned her capital murder convictions for the drownings.

That means the case will be tried again or a plea bargain will be agreed to.

In 2002, jurors rejected Yates' insanity defense and found her guilty of two murder charges in the deaths of three of the couple's children.

An appeals court in Houston overturned the convictions in January because testimony from forensic psychiatrist Park Dietz was later found to be erroneous. He suggested Yates got the idea for the murders from an episode of "Law & Order."

Yates was sentenced to life in prison and is jailed at a psychiatric prison in eastern Texas.

Yates, 41, pleaded insanity and, according to testimony at the trial, was overwhelmed by motherhood, considered herself a bad mother, suffered postpartum depression, had attempted suicide, and had been hospitalized for depression.

On Wednesday, Rusty Yates told The Early Show co-anchor Rene Syler he was "very happy" to hear Andrea may get a new trial or a plea deal.

"It's one step in the right direction, I guess, you know, for the case. I'm happy," he says. "My opinion from the beginning is I don't think this should have ever gone to trial in the first place. What I'm hoping is that the state will be more reasonable this time around and we can reach some kind of an agreement that is good for everybody.

"I would like to see a plea agreement, not guilty by reason of insanity, and have her go to a hospital. I don't know if the state's gonna agree to that or not, but certainly I hope the two sides can come together and reach some common ground so that we don't have to go back to trial and Andrea doesn't have to spend the rest of her life in prison."

Rusty says Andrea was "anxious" as she awaited the latest word from the court.