Is it okay to kill your child?

[Hound]

Is it okay to kill your child?.......... so long as you kill yourself afterwards?

One of the headlines today in the Irish Times is:

"Gardai say no foul play in deaths of mother and daughter"

All the reports I've seen on this incident in print and on TV say what a sad and tragic event this was.

The facts of the case, according to the Irish Times today, is that a 26 year old woman suffocated a 7 year old girl, and then took her own life.

Now, I presume the mother must have been going through something that I can't imagine to bring her to do what she did, but the gardai and media playing this as a tragic event where nobody did anything wrong (no foul play!) is an absolute nonsense.

No matter what the circumstance, killing a 7 year old girl is an act of obscene violence. The headlines should read:

Woman murders child then kills herself

If these people were always painted as committing evil acts, then maybe we wouldnt see so many people take this awful action when then get into desperate straits.

[haze]

totally agree with the above point. It is nothing else but murder

[Donagh]

No win situation. The family will be going through hell at the minute, condemning the mother at this stage would be crass.

[Declan]

Not to be too John Waters about it but what if it was the father who murdered the child - Would the headline or treatment be as sympathetic? 

[Billys Boots]

what if it was the father who murdered the child

It wasn't OK last month in Wexford.

[tayto]

Hard to imagine whats happening in a persons head to do something like that. All very tragic. Just like our frightening scicide rate.

[The Real Laoislad]

It seems to be getting more common in Ireland and it's actually the mothers who are doing it as much as the fathers,and i agree with Declan the mothers seem to get more sympathy when it's them that do it
There was a case in Thomastown in Kilkenny last year does anyone remember that? The mother was a doctor and she killed her daughter  then herself I haven't heard anything about it since though,And wasn't there a case in Dublin last year where a mother stabbed her two kids to death then herself ?

[his holiness nb]

A thought crossed my mind, would it be possible she lost the head and killed the child, then panicked realising what she did and killed herself?
Rather than having it all planned previously.

Its a possibility, but if she planned it, its certainly wrong to take the child with you, but I cant even begin to imagine how disturbed she was so its difficult to understand.

Tragic and RIP to both of them

[resdubwhite]

Hang on a second here lads.

There are conflicting stories here.

I've heard that they are doing toxicology tests on the bodies.

I'd wait before we rush to judgement on this case.

[his holiness nb]

This is why I specifically put "ifs" and "would it be possible" in my mail.
No conclusions jumped to.

[Evil Genius]

Technically, it is only "murder" (by the mother) if a properly convened Court of Law decides. Until then, it ought to be considered as a suspicious death or manslaughter.

As for the question of "blame", without knowing the circumstances of the case, for which an Inquest will be necessary, I tend towards sympathy for both the deceased, since for a parent to kill a child and then herself is such an extreme act that it is entirely possible that she cannot be held responsible for her own actions.

Therefore, had she survived her own suicide attempt, there is no guarantee she would have been found guilty, or even deemed fit to stand trial.

Very sad all round. 

[stew]

Technically, it is only "murder" (by the mother) if a properly convened Court of Law decides. Until then, it ought to be considered as a suspicious death or manslaughter.

As for the question of "blame", without knowing the circumstances of the case, for which an Inquest will be necessary, I tend towards sympathy for both the deceased, since for a parent to kill a child and then herself is such an extreme act that it is entirely possible that she cannot be held responsible for her own actions.

Therefore, had she survived her own suicide attempt, there is no guarantee she would have been found guilty, or even deemed fit to stand trial.

Very sad all round. 

It is murder the second the child was dead, you can dress it up whatever way you want but is is murder regardless if  she was sane or insane, even if she was unfit to stand trial it is still murder.

[Louth Exile]

what if it was the father who murdered the child

It wasn't OK last month in Wexford.

I agree

I have no sympathy for any mother or father who kills their own children and suicide won't get them out of it either!

[thebandit]

Of course it's not OK.. There seems to be double standards concerning if it is the Father or the Mother who kills

[rosnarun]

I have no sympathy for any mother or father who kills their own children and suicide won't get them out of it either!

to try and generalise about a situation is stupid and inhumane and specific cases when people are still hurting badly should be the subject of the mindless trolling by the keyboard shock jocks. just pray people are a bit more compassionate if the black dog ever darken your door