« in the 'WTF are they thinking?' category | Main | Saturday morning reading ... »
January 07, 2005
Andrea Yates - another part of the puzzle
Yesterday there was an excellent and informative post by Jeff Goldstein and a thoughtful (if at time emotional) thread at Jeff's Protein Wisdom. I'm sure most of you are aware that Andrea Yates, the mother that drowned her five children in a bathtub, had her conviction overturned on appeal.
Interestingly, this afternoon at work I received this press release from the doctor savaged by the defense in their appeal and mischaracterized by the media. It seems Dr. Dietz put this out to everyone on his email list, including my employer. It makes for an interesting read and gives further insight into the issues surrounding Yates and the whole trial system.
Where do I stand on the Yates trial? As an outsider who has not followed the case as closely as some, I believe Yates was indeed psychotic when she murdered her children. However, that fact is secondary to the murder itself and should only go towards assessing the proper facility in which she should be housed. I have no objections to her spending her life in a medical care facility. As long as it is the rest of her life and she never is allowed back into society ever again.
Our judicial system has two responsibilities, to administer justice and to protect society. Justice would be to commit Mrs. Yates to proper psychiatric care, societal safety would dictate her permanent removal from the community at large.
Posted by Darleen at January 7, 2005 06:20 PM
Comments
Darleen
I like your stand on the Yates thing, except that I am not so sure she was SOOO psychotic that she didn't know what she was doing was "wrong." I have a 4 yr old and a 5 year old. Spending a day taking care of just the two of them wares you out. So, Andrea caring for 5 aged 7 and under MUST have been EXHAUSTING! I mean, giving them a bath and washing their hair is a fight! Imagine them fighting for their last breath. Screaming and pleading for her to stop. I can't hardly imagine their horror and screams and pleas. SHe had to over power FIVE children. OK- maybe 4, little Mary was probably too young to fight bery hard. Anyway- we agree on ONE thing for sure- she doens't EVER need to be on the streets again.
Oh, and by the way- when you get your cards made up to give to the leftist wackos over the whole- sensitivity to the Islom-facists- I want about 1,000 of those! You are "DA BOMB!!"
Love ya!
Sherri
Posted by: Sherri Reese at January 9, 2005 12:21 AM