Familicide
Infanticide a tool of cowards
Child killings are becoming the weapon of the aggrieved and cowardly.
It almost seems as if killing your own is becoming a viable alternative for a scattering of gutless men too willing to lay down the lives of their children as collateral in their wars against their wives.
While once there were questions, and even a strange sense of compassion for a man obviously confused and overcome by grief, now the questions are being overrun by anger.
It happens once, it is a tragedy, but the child killings are becoming increasingly more frequent – a phenomenon that offers no explanation except for the inherent copycat nature of man.
Forget grief and confusion, more and more it is appearing as a viable way out for cowards burning in their anger. Perversely, some find a nobility in it.
The copycat nature makes it an issue in need of our time – but, unfortunately, there is no simple answer other than what we are all born with.
These people do not think straight. It is us who need to be vigilant, to think straight. To protect the children full article
A tribute to Darcey
Darcey Freeman's family has spoken publicly for the first time about the loss of their "precious little girl". The four-year-old girl died when she was allegedly dropped from a 58-metre section of the West Gate Bridge by her father last Thursday. It was the day she was due to start school. Mr Barnes expressed frustration, saying their calls for help went unanswered. "For the past two years, the various authorities have been made aware of our fear for the safety of the children and unfortunately no one would listen."
Children killed after court ordered contact
The death of little four-year-old Darcey Freeman shocked the world.
But did it shock Australian politicians enough to make them review and amend the way the Family Court of Australia deals with children where domestic violence of sexual abuse allegations are made?
DOCS had deserted murdered children of Pericoe
THE desperate plight of three children found murdered yesterday by their violent father was known to the Department of Community Services which gave up on them.
Just days earlier, the children's father Gary Bell, 44 was released by police on bail after bashing his wife, with the officers notifying the beleaguered department about Jack, 7, Maddie, 5 and Bon, aged just 18 months.
Last night, hours after their tiny bodies and their dead father were found in a car at the family's home at Pericoe on the Far South Coast, DOCS admitted it failed to reach the family and offered the excuse that staff had tried.
Karen Bell tells of murder-suicide husband's motive
A MAN who killed himself and his three children left a suicide note saying he could not live without them and did not want to go to jail, it was revealed last night.
Gary Bell - who was found dead in a car with his children at their Pericoe property less than two weeks ago - feared he was going to jail after assaulting his wife Karen.
In the suicide note, Mr Bell, 44, said he could not live without his children and he thought he was going to lose them as well as go to jail.
Response to murder-suicide- letter to the editor
Under Australian Family Law, this father (and every other parent) has the right to have contact with the children 50% of the time regardless of any AVO taken out to protect his wife. If there were records and convictions for assault against the children, then this may be reduced to supervised contact or only alternate weekends with a weeknight sleepover in a contested court process if the wife has decent representation. He could not have been denied contact until a court determined that it was not in the children's best interests. If the mother had attempted to deny him contact at least 50% of the time, this man would have grounds to demand (and win) that he be the resident parent for these children and the mother have contact on alternate weekends. If a man becomes violent with his wife after she has had children with him, she cannot possibly protect herself or those children from him under the current Australian Laws.
In 1981, I shared a house with a young mother on the run from a violent husband. When the Family Court granted him access, he abducted one child. He subsequently took both children, murdered them and killed himself. The effect on the mother, grandparents and other relatives and friends has been heartbreaking..
Man charged with murder , rape and indecent treatment of 10yr old girl.
A Queensland man has been charged with murder , rape and indecent treatment of a child after a 10-year-old girl's body was found at a house north of Brisbane.
Many articles regarding this event have been included.
Farquharson jailed for life without parole
A FATHER accused of murdering his three young boys by driving them into a dam on Father's Day last year told an acquaintance he planned to kill the children that day so his former wife "would suffer every Father's Day for the rest of her life", a court has been told .Police have charged Robert Farquharson with the murder of his three sons, who drowned when a car plunged into a dam near Geelong on Father's Day.
Justice Philip Cummins told Farquharson on his sentencing: "You had love for your children, but it was displaced by vindictiveness towards your estranged wife, which led you to these crimes. I do not find that you had a fixed intention over months to kill your children, but you contemplated it over months
Fathers who kill their children
In the week when one father murdered his four children, and another was jailed for life, Lorna Martin investigates the motives and twisted minds of the men Americans call 'family annihilators'. Are they driven by hatred, revenge or mad, possessive love? The story of Sarah Heatley.
What drives some parents to kill their children then suicide?
Another of the myths is that the men don't have access to the children. Research doesn't bear that out either. All the men had contact, and in six of the seven cases, they actually used their contact time to commit the murder. Primarily, it appeared that the offence didn't have anything to do with the dispute about custody and access because some of the cases hadn't even been to the Family Court. In all seven cases, the father was the perpetrator. ... it seemed in all the cases the man had a problem dealing with separation and he felt a distinct loss of control.
Familicide and custody disputes - dispelling the myths
This article is based on a qualitative study, which examined in depth, seven cases of familicide (where disputed residency and contact was identified as being an issue between the parties) in Western Australia. These offences typically consist of one or more young children being murdered by their father, the homicide being followed by the perpetrator’s suicide.
Investigation into family shooting continues
A post-mortem examination will be carried out today on the bodies of a 34-year-old man and his two children who died in an apparent double murder-suicide in Perth on Wednesday.
The bodies of the man, his six-year-old daughter and his 23-month-old son were found in a bedroom of their Redcliffe home by the children's mother. Western Australian police have released the names of those killed - they were Sayed Rahi, his daughter Raheel and son Mansoor.
Familicide, Separation and Disputed Custody and Access
Presentation of statistics re domestic violence and familicide.
Dead: two children the system failed
Child protection departments around Australia were reluctant to investigate child abuse allegations or take legal action when parents were involved in Family Court proceedings: "If a matter is in the Family Court, the burden of proving abuse is on the shoulders of the parents. Children are being left in a catch-22 situation."
A confidential NSW Ombudsman's report, obtained by the Herald, reveals the Family Court granted a father an extended access visit with his young son after DOCS failed to intervene in the court proceedings. In one case, three notifications of child abuse were dismissed as "malicious", the father's threats to kill the child were not taken seriously, and the mother was told to see her solicitor.
Court order results in death of two children
On April 25, 2004, Jayson Dalton took the lives of his own children, Jesse (18 months old) and Patrick (3 months old). He then took his own life as well. The fact is that these children were with their dangerous father because of a court order. Today we call on the judge that made that order to resign his position in the Family Court at Brisbane because despite Chief Justice’ Bryant’s contention that “There was nothing to indicate this would happen,” there were very serious allegations presented to the judge when he granted interim residence to the father. For too long, the indicators of danger to children have been ignored by the Family Court, who instead continue to give more weight to the “contact” principle (60B) than to the need to protect the child to an unacceptable risk of family violence (68K).
Losing the Children
On Anzac Day morning this year, Brisbane man Jayson Dalton took the lives of his two small children, Jessie and Patrick, and then killed himself. Dalton had been a doting father who lavished love and attention on his children. So why did he take their lives?The tragedy followed what Jayson Dalton told his children was "a bad day in court". On the Friday before, he had failed in his application to the Family Court to have "shared care" of his children.
Transcript of ABC Interview Interview with Dionne Dalton,( wife and mother of Jessie and Patrick) Owen Pershouse,(founder of MENDS) Dianne Bryant, Chief Justice Family Court and others ...
A mother's tale of murder reduces police to tears June 14, 2006
Ingrid Poulson is fighting for changes to how police approach domestic violence, after her family was murdered.
SENIOR police were reduced to tears and stunned silence by the time Ingrid Poulson had delivered her last slide."Your statistics," she said, "equals my family. And I want you to meet them."And there was her smiling family on the big screen in the darkened room at the Australian Police College in Manly,Sydney: her father, Peter Poulson 72; her daughter Marilyn Kongsom, 4, and her son Sebastian Kongsom, 20months. They were all murdered on September 15, 2003, when her estranged husband, Phithak Kongsom, knifed them andthen killed himself.
Twenty-Nine child homicides: Lessons still to be learnt on domestic violence and child protection
Familicide, where the spouse and children are victims are rarely committed by women. Women will kill children and themselves often when suffering a delusional illness or in some cases of long term severe abuse by their partner Men will kill spouse, children and themselves when facing perceived financial ruin or loss of status Men will kill children and themselves following marital separation
OTHER SUBJECT HEADINGS:
Familicide
Child Abuse
Child Sexual Assault
Domestic Violence
Male Suicide
False Allegations or False Denials?