SAN LEANDRO -- A Berkeley mother sobbed uncontrollably Thursday when she appeared in court for the first time on charges that she murdered her 9-year-old son at their home last week.

Misti Hassan, 31, who was dressed in red jail clothes and tearfully nodded at about a dozen family members and friends who came to her brief appearance in Alameda County Superior Court, is scheduled to return to court Nov. 16 to enter a plea to charges that she murdered Amir Hassan at her apartment at 3011 Shattuck Avenue.

Berkeley police found Amir dead when they went to the apartment shortly before 9:30 a.m. Oct. 10 after getting a tip from San Jose police.

Misti Hassan was suffering from cuts to her arms and neck and was taken to a local trauma center, where she was treated for non-life threatening injuries, Kusmiss said.

Hassan later was taken to the John George Psychiatric Pavilion in San Leandro, where she was arraigned Monday. Since then she has been transferred to a jail in Dublin, where she's still being held.

Outside court, her attorney, Lewis Romero, said, "On behalf of the Hassan family, I want to thank all the countless people who sent their love from New York to California to Amir and Misti and the greater Hassan family."

Romero said, "We're still in mourning and still grieving."

Romero said, "Through this tragic loss, I hope the community will gain an understanding of people who are afflicted with mental illness."

Authorities have indicated that Hassan may have suffered from mental illness and Berkeley police say that a friend of Hassan's told authorities that Hassan phoned her the morning of Oct. 10 and said she killed Amir with an anti-anxiety medication.

People close to the case also have indicated that Hassan may have been upset that Amir's father, Chad A. Reed, was seeking custody of Amir and that her boyfriend had recently broken up with her.