Mothers Who Kill Their Children: Understanding the Acts of Moms from Susan Smith to the "Prom Mom"

by Cheryl Meyer, Michelle Oberman, Kelly White (Contributor)

An inside look into patterns and potential prevention plans for one of the most hotly sensationalized crimes

A special kind of horror is reserved for mothers who kill their children. Cases such as those of Susan Smith, who drowned her two young sons by driving her car into a lake, and Melissa Drexler, who disposed of her newborn baby in a restroom at her prom, become media sensations. Unfortunately, in addition to these high-profile cases, hundreds of mothers kill their children in the United States each year. The question most often asked is, why? What would drive a mother to kill her own child?

Those who work with such cases, whether in clinical psychology, social services, law enforcement or academia, often lack basic understandings about the types of circumstances and patterns which might lead to these tragic deaths, and the social constructions of motherhood which may affect women's actions. These mothers oftentimes defy the myths and media exploitation of them as evil, insane, or lacking moral principles, and they are not a homogenous group. In obvious ways, intervention strategies should differ for a teenager who denies her pregnancy and then kills her newborn and a mother who kills her two toddlers out of mental illness or to further a relationship. A typology is needed to help us to understand the different cases that commonly occur and the patterns they follow in order to make possible more effective prevention plans.

Mothers Who Kill Their Children draws on extensive research to identify clear patterns among the cases of women who kill their children, shedding light on why some women commit these acts. The characteristics the authors establish will be helpful in creating more meaningful policies, more targeted intervention strategies, and more knowledgeable evaluations of these cases when they arise.

Genres: True Crime

224 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2001

Reviews

[Margaret Cornell · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is unfair to women incarcerated for violent crimes, especially those who kill their children. The authors use a very broad brush to describe and discuss a subject with tremendous variation and nuance. They overgeneralize at every turn. Basically, the authors blame "the system": medical, legal, child advocacy, prison without considering each woman's state of mind. The effect of serious mental illness is glossed over and replaced by the failure of social services. None of the women are seen as competent accountable adults, rather portrayed as wounded children.
Terrible treatment of a serious and complicated issue.

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very interesting and one of the few nonfictions that I read this year. I loved how the author dove deep into this harrowing subject. It was fast paced and did not feel like reading a textbook at all!

[Valerie, Queen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Was expecting an Ann Rule type of book. This went into a broader understanding.