A study of 15 matricidal men

The Role of Forensic Investigation in an Unusual Case of Patricide by a Schizophrenic Woman Involving Dismemberment of a Decomposed Body

Dismemberment is characterized by the fragmentation of the body into anatomical sections. It can occur because of a murder, suicide, or accident. In the literature, there are no cases of patricide perpetrated by a daughter in which the offender performed the dismemberment. However, in this paper, we reported a case of patricide by a schizophrenic daughter that was not treated with antipsychotic therapy. Post-mortem Computed Tomography (PMCT), autopsy, and histological examinations were performed. The soft tissues were removed through maceration techniques and chemical treatment. An analysis was performed to study the bone margins and clarify the weapon and manner of death. This investigation, which used radiological and histological studies, helped to assess the vitality of the injuries. The purpose of the study is to discover the weapon used, the cause, and the manner of death, with particular interest in this case due to the dismemberment. Moreover, we emphasize the correlation between patricide, dismemberment, and a lack of antipsychotic treatment in patients with schizophrenia.

From overkill to beheading: A case report of a schizophrenic matricide

Initial evidence exists on a subtype of matricide committed by subjects suffering from severe mental disorders. Matricide perpetrators often undergo a forensic psychiatric evaluation during the subsequent criminal trial because of supposed legal insanity. The few studies on matricide by mentally disordered perpetrators suggested a possible association between such extreme form of violence and schizophrenia spectrum disorders, especially in case of active delusions or hallucinations.

METHODS

we analyze a case of a young male with a recent diagnosis of psychotic disorder who committed matricide by inflicting multiple injuries and beheading. Data emerging from the forensic pathological analysis of the victim, as well as the forensic psychiatric analysis of the matricide perpetrator are discussed within an interdisciplinary perspective.

RESULTS

the autopsy revealed multiple stab wounds in the regions of the upper limbs, abdomen, chest, and neck, the latter determining beheading. The forensic psychiatric evaluation yielded a diagnosis of schizophrenia and clarified the causal role in the homicidal behavioral of active psychotic symptoms.

CONCLUSION

the specific type of delusional content, and perpetrator-victim relationship might contribute explaining a subtype of extremely violent homicide in recent onset schizophrenia.

Matricide by Mentally Disordered Sons: Gaining a Criminological Understanding Beyond Mental Illness--A Descriptive Study

Matricide is one of the rarest of reported murders and has always been considered one of the most abhorrent crimes. Psychiatric investigations as to why a son might murder his mother yield indications of a high rate of mental illness, primarily psychotic disorders, in perpetrators. In an attempt to gain an in-depth understanding of the role of the mother-son bond in the etiology of matricide by mentally disordered sons, this article presents a qualitative study of nine cases of matricide examined at two Italian Forensic Psychiatry Departments between 2005 and 2010 and retrospective analysis of forensic psychiatry reports on the offenders. Most matricides suffered from psychotic disorders, especially schizophrenia. Nevertheless, not all the perpetrators had psychotic symptoms at the time of the crime. A "pathologic" mother-son bond was found in all cases. However, mental illness is not the only variable related to matricide and, taken alone, is not enough to explain the crime. Several factors in the history of the mother and son need to be probed, especially how their relationship developed over the years. The peculiar dynamics of the mother-son relationship and the unique personalities and life experiences of both subjects are the real key to cases of matricide.

A descriptive and follow-up study of 40 parricidal patients hospitalized in a French secure unit over a 15-year period

Parricide is rare and represents 3% of all homicides in France, and 4% of resolved homicides in North America. Consequently, related international literature is sparse, especially concerning the evolution of offenders, and most studies concern small samples or anecdotal cases. We wished to identify the main characteristics of parricidal subjects and their victims, and to assess the socioclinical evolution of the offenders after the assault. To this end, we first studied the sociodemographic, clinical and forensic characteristics of all parricidal patients admitted to France's Henri Colin secure unit between 1996 and 2010 (40 patients). We also assessed the evolution of the 36 patients who had left the secure unit, using questionnaires sent to the psychiatric hospitals where the patients were transferred. We found most offenders to be men (97.5%), with a mean age of 28 years, who were mostly single, unemployed, living with the victim prior to the assault (77.5%), and with a history of psychiatric disorder (72.5%). The population of offenders also displayed an overrepresentation of schizophrenia (87.5%), significant toxic exposure and criminal or violent history. Some patients had attempted suicide before or right after the offense. The assault was mostly committed in the parent's house with an edged weapon, and was characterized by brutality and lack of premeditation. Precipitating factors included substance use and cessation of psychotropic medication. Matricide was more frequent than patricide. At the time of this study, half of the parricidal patients were working or attending therapeutic activities, and most were actively keeping in contact with their family, living as compliant outpatients with no signs of violent behavior. The results of our study on 40 parricidal patients are consistent with data in the literature. With regard to sample evolution, family and community reintegration was relatively effective considering the seriousness of the offense. Several biases in our study disallow the generalization of these findings, and further studies are needed.

An Archival Exploration of 19th-Century American Adult Female Offender Parricides

Social and behavioral scientists have increasingly attended to the contexts and motivational dynamics underlying parricidal events. These efforts notwithstanding, most research has focused on adolescent or adult male offender populations. One largely neglected area of study is that of adult female offender parricide. The present study utilizes archival records to examine the contexts and sources of conflict that gave rise to adult female offender parricides in the late 19th century. Three general themes emerged, representing the primary contexts behind adult female offender parricide: (1) abuse and neglect; (2) instrumental, financially-motivated killings; and (3) expressive killings, often during the course of arguments. Each of these contexts is explored.

["It was me or them!": the no exit escape of a future author of psychotic double parricide]

CASE-REPORT

H. had perceived his father as an evil persecutor ever since his adolescence. He developed paranoid schizophrenia of persecution in which his father occupied the main role. Little by little, in his desperate resistance against his father, perceived as his enemy, he acquired such a feeling of prejudice, of violation of his personality, and of impotence that the only way out was to escape in order to survive. At the age of 18, he decides to run away from home and from France to stop suffering. He goes to Canada and later to the USA where he would stay 9 years, during which his madness does not stop. Wherever he goes, he always feels the presence of his father in his head: "He orders me, he criticizes me from a distance, he steals all my thoughts, he is in charge of my actions, he takes away the bread from my mouth to humiliate me and kill me…" Thanks to his marginal lifestyle, he maintains a relative adaptation, a fragile equilibrium in his existential bubble in which he doesn't tolerate any breaking and entering. His delusion of prejudices and persecution, of which the main character had always been his father, extends to include society in general, cornering and leading the subject to commit an offense as a reaction of irrepressible pathological self-defense. He is questioned by the police, taken to prison and later taken to an American psychiatric hospital, after shooting at those whom he thinks are "CIA agents" (who are actually people forcing him to move the boat in which he lives). After being deported back to France, he returns to his parent's home, the source of all his madness. During the following months, he lives locked up in his room afraid of being near his father and tormented by his delirious ideas. In order to stop his suffering, he decides to buy a fire-arm to kill himself. One day, his father, accompanied by his mother, break into his room. He takes the rifle hidden under the mattress, and kills his father at point blank. "I thought that I had instantly killed my father, because he fell face down on the ground. On the other hand, my mother remained standing while my sister, screaming, escaped through the window of the living room. My mother, injured on her right side, moved back to the living room. Seeing that my mother hadn't fallen to the ground and not wanting to make her suffer, I reloaded my rifle. I took out the cartridge, and reloaded the rifle with a cartridge of buckshot. It seemed to me that she was still standing in front of the couch. I fired the gun a second time without looking and at that moment she falls on the couch… dead… She is the enemy because she is my father's wife".

DISCUSSION

The recounting and analysis of this double psychotic parricide case illustrate the psychopathologic constants and criminal dynamic that are most often present in this type of crime. The constants are the following: the perpetrator of the post-adolescence or adult parricide is often a psychotic young man; he/she lives a long, delusional story in which one or both parents have an important role; this insane delusion leads to suffering and/or to identifiable behavioral problems that together can constitute a criminal psychic state; The homicidal reaction takes place right after one or a group of factors (such as an argument, brawl, a fit of delusion, interruption of the therapeutic treatment…) that are set off in the criminal pathological state. These psychopathological constants, if they conjoin, are also the factors and indicators of danger. They should be considered as a warning sign to take preventive and remedial measures.

Parricides by mentally disordered offenders in Zimbabwe

AIM

The aim of this study was to examine the similarities and differences between matricide and patricide committed by mentally disordered offenders in Zimbabwe.

METHODS

A comprehensive, retrospective and national study was carried out of all individuals in Zimbabwe who, between 1980 and 1990 inclusive, were charged with homicide of their biological parents. The data were obtained from a hospital-wide survey, in a written semistructured format.

RESULTS

The sample size was 39 offenders (34 men, 5 women) and there were 39 victims (20 matricides and 19 patricides). Sons committed 18 patricides and 16 matricides, and daughters committed one patricide and four matricides. The mean age of the offenders was 35 years with a standard deviation of 9.8, and the mean age of the victims was 60 years with a standard deviation of 9.3. Ethnicity of all the offenders and their victims was African. About one-third of the offenders were known to the psychiatric services and the rest were found to be mentally ill at the time of the crime when they were tried in the court of law. Most of the offenders were suffering from a psychotic illness and one offender had a diagnosis of personality disorder. Half of the offenders had been to a traditional healer some time before committing the crime. Most of the offenders used a blunt instrument, 15 used sharp instruments and one woman used strangulation. Firearms were not used in committing parricide.

CONCLUSION

The study showed that sons committed most parricides. However, daughters committed matricide more frequently than patricide. Male offenders were 10 years younger than female offenders. In all cases both the offender and victim were African, and lived in the same house in the rural areas of Zimbabwe. Psychosis among the offenders had substantially increased the risk of parricide.

Matricide: a critique of the literature

Matricide, the killing of mothers by their biological children, is a very rare event, comprising less that 2% of all U.S. homicides in which the victim-offender relationship is known. This manuscript examines more than 20 years of U.S. homicides to determine the age and gender characteristics of matricide offenders. These data reveal that most mothers are killed by their adult sons. Daughters younger than 18 years are the most infrequent killers of mothers. This article examines the incidence of parricide, the involvement of sons and daughters in matricidal incidents, and synthesizes the literature in terms of offender gender. Special attention is given to female matricide offenders, given the lack of research currently available with respect to this population. Implications for practice, policy, and research are discussed.

Mental disorders of male parricidal offenders: a study of offenders in forensic psychiatric examination in Finland during 1973-2004

BACKGROUND

Information on parricidal offenders is mainly derived from selective samples of hospitalized patients. According to literature, a substantial proportion of parricidal offenders suffers from major mental disorders and is found to be not guilty by reason of insanity. The aim of this study was to examine and compare diagnoses and criminal responsibilities of matricidal and patricidal offenders in detail using a comprehensive national data set.

METHOD

Forensic psychiatric examination statements of 86 matricidal and 106 patricidal male offenders evaluated in a forensic psychiatric examination during 1973-2004 in Finland were reviewed retrospectively.

RESULTS

Matricidal offenders suffered more commonly from a psychotic disorder than did patricidal offenders, whereas a greater proportion of patricidal offenders had a personality disorder. Among schizophrenic offenders the paranoid subtype was more common in the group of matricidal offenders than in the group of patricidal offenders. Of personality disorders, borderline personality disorder was more frequently found among patricidal offenders than among matricidal offenders. Matricidal offenders were more commonly found not guilty by reason of insanity than patricidal offenders. For matricidal offences the most common motive was a mental disorder, whereas patricidal offences were most often motivated by a long-term conflict. In addition, patricidal acts were more likely to be preceded by threat by the victim than matricidal acts.

CONCLUSIONS

This study supports the hypothesis that matricidal offenders suffer from psychotic disorders more often than patricidal offenders, even though both groups seem to be characterized by a high level of psychopathology. Rarely reported in the literature, personality disorders show up frequently among parricidal offenders, particularly among patricidal offenders. Recognition and treatment of mental disorders underlying parricidal acts may prevent these offences, at least in some cases.

A comparative analysis of media reports of U.S. parricide cases with officially reported national crime data and the psychiatric and psychological literature

This article is a content analysis of 150 unique cases of children killing parents in the United States as reported in the electronic news media. The accuracy of online coverage of U.S. parricide incidents is assessed using two types of resources: officially reported national statistics on known parricidal incidents and the psychological and psychiatric literature on matricide and patricide. Comparisons of news accounts of media-reported U.S. parricide cases with Supplementary Homicide Report data indicate that electronic media coverage of parricide cases focused on the more sensational and unusual parricides. Analyses of these media accounts by offender age found 13 significant differences between juvenile and adult offenders. Ten of these 13 differences related to motive and Heide's parricide offender types (severely abused, severely mentally ill, and dangerously antisocial) and were consistent with the mental health-related literature in this area. The limitations and directions for future research are discussed at length.

Parricide: an empirical analysis of 24 years of U.S. data

Empirical analysis of homicides in which children have killed parents has been limited. The most comprehensive statistical analysis involving parents as victims was undertaken by Heide and used Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) data for the 10-year period 1977 to 1986. This article provides an updated examination of characteristics of victims, offenders, and offenses in parricide incidents using SHR data for the 24-year period 1976 to 1999. The analysis proceeds in two stages. First, offense (homicide circumstances), victim (age, race), and offender (age, race, sex) correlates are reported. Second, juvenile involvement in incidents in which parents were killed is examined and a determination is made whether changes in youth involvement in parricide offenses are discernible over the 24-year period. The article concludes with a comparison of findings that emerged from 24 years of data with those from the earlier 10-year period and the discussion of the significance of these findings.

Parricides in the media: a content analysis of available reports across cultures

This article is a content analysis of news reports of parricide cases occurring worldwide. An extensive search of online databases found coverage of more than 200 cases of children killing parents reported in the news media. Data pertaining to incidents, case-related variables (e.g., weapons used, other charges), and the processing of offenders from the initial charge through conviction and sentencing are examined. To the extent possible, media accounts are used to classify cases according to motive and Heide's three types of parricide offenders. Twelve significant differences are discussed between U.S. and non-U.S. cases of parricide with respect to characteristics of parricide incidents, motives and other areas of clinical interest in reported parricide offenders, and Heide's typology. The article concludes with a discussion of media representations of the phenomenon versus the actual occurrence, several observations that emerged from these news accounts, and directions for future research.

Le parricide psychotique. La prévention en question

LITERATURE FINDINGS

Parricide is a rare event. In France, statistics indicate that it accounts for 2 to 3% of all homicides. It also represents an appreciable part (up to 30%) of homicides committed by psychotic subjects. Many studies suggest a strong positive correlation between criminality and characterized mental illness. The correlation is better when there is a diagnosis of schizophrenia, an alcohol or drugs consumption and a past personal history of violence. Parricide is a crime mainly committed by males. The most frequent form of parricide is patricide committed by sons. However, considering only psychotic parricides, the number of mothers killed seems is equal or higher to the number of fathers killed.

CLINICAL FEATURES

The typical profile of an adult committing parricide could be described as follows: a young single unemployed male, living with his victim, suffering from schizophrenia with comorbidity of alcohol or drug abuse and consumption, who stops his medication, and having a past history of medicolegal behaviours. The parricide act can be divided into three stages; first, the contention of the emergence of parricide ideas; second, the violence and brutality of the act; third, following a transient appeasement suicidal thoughts or attempts are frequently observed.

DISCUSSION

Preventing parricides and homicides committed by psychotic subjects is a great challenge. Only a few studies aim to a better understanding of the underlying motivations of such criminals. According to theses studies, we can point out several warning signals. Psychiatrist should particularly increase their vigilance to persecutive delusions, history of a long lasting illness with history of violence during acute stages, threats against family or friends, suicidal thoughts, failures of help requests and attempt to escape.

The Role of Psychopathology and Personality in Rage-Type Homicide: A Review

This article reviews the role of psychopathology and personality in offenders who have committed acts of rage-type murder. The possible role of depression, PTSD, psychotic disorders, intellectual functioning and alcohol/drug abuse are critically considered. It is argued that although some forms of psychopathology may be indicated in some cases, these still remain in the minority. This seems to be consistent with findings that describe such offenders as ‘apparently normal’. In an attempt to explain this further, the character profile and psychodynamics of personality are reviewed. A pattern of overcontrol is isolated as a key theme that best explains the ‘apparent normality’ of the rage-type offender. The relevance of the DSM-IV classification system of personality disorders for understanding this kind of criminal is considered. It is argued that a particular type of borderline personality organisation, not isolated by the DSM-IV system, best explains this character pattern.

Treating mentally abnormal killers in a regional secure unit: some suggested guidelines

Despite a growing literature on various psychiatric aspects of homicide, there are few guidelines for treating mentally abnormal killers. This paper describes the background to this area and draws upon the author's experience in an English Regional Secure Unit, working with patients who have killed whilst suffering from an 'abnormality of mind'. A number of treatment issues are raised and some treatment guidelines are suggested. A case study is presented to illustrate some of these points.

Matricide: the schizophrenic crime?

The aim of the study was to further examine the view that matricide is 'the schizophrenic crime' (Gilles, 1965). This report represents a comprehensive, retrospective and national study of all individuals in Scotland who, between 1957 and 1987 inclusive, were charged with the murder or the culpable homicide of their biological mother. Files of High Court indictments were examined for the relevant years to identify offenders prior to disposal, and individuals were followed up with respect to diagnosis and disposal. Twenty-six (twenty-three men and three women) were convicted of the murder or culpable homicide of their biological mother. Only 50 per cent (thirteen subjects) were known to the State Hospital, Carstairs. Six (24 per cent) subjects suffered from schizophrenia, seven (24 per cent) were given no diagnosis, five (20 per cent) suffered from personality disorder, four (16 per cent) from the alcohol dependence syndrome, three (12 per cent) from depressive illness, and one (4 per cent) from hypomania. Thus, whilst schizophrenia is over-represented in this subgroup of offenders, matricide should not be viewed as the schizophrenic crime. Given the prevalence of mental disorder in this group, pre-trial assessment by a Forensic Psychiatrist should be mandatory.

Acting on delusion: a review

The paper reviews the link between delusional beliefs and behaviour. The literature pertaining to the link between normal beliefs and behaviour is briefly examined, emphasizing the predominance of psychological and philosophical contributions to the topic. The psychiatric literature describing actions consequent upon delusional beliefs is then reviewed. In conclusion, those aspects of psychosis, distinct from delusional beliefs themselves, which may affect the likelihood of a given belief being acted upon, are discussed.

Women who kill their parents

The literature on parricide is reviewed with special reference to women. Seventeen female parricides (14 matricides, 3 patricides) were identified: in a remand prison (11), a Special Hospital (5), and a Regional Secure Unit (1). Six were schizophrenic, five had psychotic depression, three had personality disorders, and one was alcoholic. Two of the patricides had no psychiatric disorder but retaliated against violent fathers. Regardless of psychiatric diagnosis, matricides were mostly single, socially isolated women in mid-life, living alone with a domineering mother in a mutually dependent but hostile relationship. Similar characteristics are found in male matricides, who are predominantly schizophrenic. It is suggested that these features are of greater significance in matricide than the specific form of psychiatric disorder. Compared with filicides, matricides were significantly older, were single, and more often suffered from mental illness and substance abuse. Attention is drawn to the possible homicidal risk associated with delusions of poisoning and hypochondriacal delusions.