During this day and age we hear more and more crimes being committed against children, murders being committed. And the biggest reason for these crimes is because of mental defect, depression, or postpartum depression, are almost always the pleas these days for the reason that the cold callous killings of their children have been committed. Also could it be a crime of passion for someone to adore them and not objective for their child? And the scariest most unbelievable factor is that society is accepting this at face value. Many forget that a person that should have above all protected it has killed innocence in its purist form.
A recent case in point is the disappearance of Caylee Anthony since her disappearance in June her mother Casey Anthony has changed her story on more than one occasion. From not reporting her daughter missing for more than a month, to saying that her daughter had been kidnapped by her baby sitter, to DNA evidence of Caylee being in the trunk of her mother’s car with more than likely decomposing evidence that has shown hair samples and other DNA evidence.
Casey Anthony has sense reveling the disappearance of her daughter in July led the police on to constant empty leads. Lied about employment, why she hadn’t reported her daughter missing and has been caught with stolen property and friends credit cards without authorization. While family members and Casey’s lawyer claims the reason that this case is being pushed so hard is because the district attorney running for re-election, but more and more evidence is pointing to the obvious. If Caylee Anthony is alive why is her mother Casey stringing this along? Why does she not want her daughter to be found? And if Caylee is plain Casey knows in her heart that she will not be able to get out of some sort of jail sentence.
Though rumors are running that if charged and convicted that her lawyers may utilize the plea of being mentally incapacitated or insane and this is the reason why this poor single mother may have killed her daughter. Could this happen? It’s a high probability and with they way our courts run to allowing diminished mental capacity as a just cause for murders of young children by their mothers only time will tell what may happen in this case. For the sake of all I do hope that Caylee Anthony is alive and is found but as time passes so do our hopes. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27193656/
Another abolish committed by a mother was the case of Susan Smith of South Carolina. In the topple of October 25th, 1994 Susan Smith contacted police stating that she had been carjacked and her two young sons had still been inside the vehicle. During that time Susan and her estranged husband David Smith came attend together to plead for the safety and return of their two missing sons. Nine days later Smith confessed to the murders of her sons Michael and Alex Smith having them strapped into their car seats and rolled the car into John D. Long Lake in Union County, South Carolina. Susan thought by getting rid of her sons a man that she was involved with would continue his relationship with her because he had previously stated that he didn’t want a ready made family.
During this time Smith’s lawyers and witnesses stated that she was battling depression over her failed marriage, a deteriorating relationship with another man that she cared for and the sexual abuse that she sustained as a teenager by her stepfather. This fact let the jury to decide whether she should have a life sentence or the death penalty. Feeling that she needed help that she had not received as a young adult the jury decided to not go for the death penalty citing that she needed mental succor. My opinion is they felt that by murdering her sons it was her only way of acting out to get some sort of attention. I personally do not believe that she should have been able to avoid the death penalty. Sparing her life does not bring back the life of two tiny boys that never got the chance to live. www.teleplex.net/shj/smith/trial/jurorl.html
My third case in point is that of mother Andrea Yates who drowned her children in the family bathtub and defense stated that she was suffering from postpartum depression. After meeting her husband Russell Yates they were under the faith of having as many children as nature allowed. This was based on a mentor of Russell’s that he had made while in college at Auburn University. At their wedding in 1993 they both stated that they would be having as many children as nature allowed. A philosophy used by Russell’s mentor Michael Woroniecki who had berated the Yates during the years for falling short in their faith and may have added to Andrea’s psychosis.
What makes this case a bit different in part was the fact that Andrea was getting attend for her problems with depression, psychosis, and postpartum. Yet, they were in fact told upon her release from her one Dr. that another child would most certainly lead into another psychosis for Andrea. Knowing this her and her husband within 7 weeks of being released from the doctor’s care announced they were expecting their fifth child. Three months after the birth of their fifth child Andrea’s psychosis returned and was fueled by the death of her father just a couple of weeks later. An immediate hospitalization occurred and while in treatment with her new doctor her behavior continued to deteriorate. Advised to be monitored around the clock her husband and scheduled for his mother to come in shortly after he left work. Within an hour after her husband left for work Andrea had drowned all five of their children which were found when Russell’s mother arrived to check and stay with Andrea and the children.
There are many people to blame and fingers to point at the senseless death of five children by their mother. Did Andrea need mental help? In my concept most certainly, did she receive it? To a degree yes she did and knew that to promote her mental health wellness was to not have more children. Did her husband Russell Yates aid her to have their youngest child? We may never truly know if he did indeed encourage it or if she felt that to be faithful to her religious beliefs that she should continue to have more children knowing that she could harm them or herself if she chose to do this. When you know right from inappropriate when you know in your own heart or mind that you may do harm to someone else then I believe that you have no reason to request not guilty by reason of insanity. If you know suitable from wrong, if you know you can be held accountable, if you know that you may cause damage to yourself or others then you know that you need to get help. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrea_Yates
Society give us so many outlets to use by reason of insanity that we no longer deem of the senseless killings of children that can not defend themselves. The same children that are brought up to consider that their parent’s are there to protect them from harm, but what happens when it’s the parents that are causing the harm? Who do these innocent children have to turn to for help? Because only in death are they truly proper when the protector becomes the murderer of not only their lives but of their innocence. Society needs to behold and change it’s laws. But remember this, though I’m determined that many of you have heard a comparison similar to this, you have to have a license to drive a car but anyone can be a parent ANYONE…