Wow, how tragic. This case was incredibly hard to watch, but it made me wonder about a few things. First off, if the doctors knew she had the worst case of Postpartum Psychosis Depression, how come when Andrea discharged herself, even though she was not ready, the nurses and doctors did not object? What if a patient had a contagious deadly disease and discharged him or herself, and the doctors did not object? It just does not happen. You would think that they would not want to risk the safety of that patient or others around them. Also, why would Andrea's new doctor refuse to give her the medication her previous doctor gave her? It may have been possible that she was not getting the correct medication, or medication that did not work as well as her old medication. This may have played a huge role in Andrea's actions! I know someone with Postpartum Depression (not psychosis.. just depression), and it is so important that she takes her medication. At the end of the documentary, it was made clear that people not only blamed Andrea, but people also blamed Rusty. Although Rusty should have listened to the doctor when he was told that another child could bring on worse conditions, I do not think Rusty is to blame. Andrea was his wife, mentally ill or not. I do not think he could have ever guessed she would do such a horrible thing. After all, they had been married for quite some time, and according to the documentary, "she loved her children very much." I do think another adult should have been there, just because Andrea was still unstable. But I understand how Rusty could not have seen this coming.
Also, just a question regarding her life sentence..
How come Andrea was allowed parole if she was sentenced to life in prison? Does everyone get parole? How is it determined?
I totally agree with you Megan, this case was heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to how parole works, I am pretty sure that one can be eligible for parole once they have served a third of their sentence. For example, if someone was sentenced to thirty years for a life sentence, they could be eligible for parole after serving ten years. But I think it changes depending on the sentence and the offense.
It was one of the most hardest case to watch. I found it super hard to find right justice for what occurred. There were many factors that added to the case, its hard to know who or what was also involved. My question is, would there be any actual way that this tragic incident could be been prevented? If so by who or by what?
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Megan, although Andrea did the killing, there were lots of spots where this could've been prevented. The doctors can't just pull her off medication and not expect a result. Also considering Rusty was her loved one, he should notice that she is acting different and that thats not the girl he married, he must've known something.
ReplyDeleteInteresting feedback, Megan. I can identify where you are coming from with this. Morally, I think t any person, it would be considered an act of inhumanity being responsible for the deaths for all five of your children. It makes you want to sort of in a way want to study the human mind in regards to being associated with post partum psychosis.
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