206 H Court and the Legal System—Family ForensicsThere are mixed feelings about how to punish someone who takes another's life
but does so for the purpose of saving their own. If there were effective programs,
community outlets, and judicial supports for victims of abuse, then murder would
not have to be the end result. Currently, the mental health field provides support for
the plea of self-defense in relation to abuse cases, but it has been faintly accepted by
the judicial system. There are several cases and articles that address this phenomenon;
more research on policy implications needs to be provided.
Suggestions for Future ResearchResearch needs to be conducted so that more effective programs are established to
decrease the occurrence of abuse and possible murder. As it stands, programs are
not necessarily the problem, but the lack of funding and inadequate staffing inhibits
these programs from being as effective as they could be. Frequently, money is hard
to raise when benefits are not immediate or apparent. Abuse intervention at crucial
moments will help to decrease the number of familial homicides because it will
eliminate murders by abusers as well as retaliations by the abused.
Many victims who kill their abusers are sentenced to prison terms similar to
those of other violent offenders. They are placed in the same units as the other
predatorial offenders simply because their crime was murder. This can create many
problems for the individual as well as environmental problems within the prison. The
individual sentenced to prison for self-defense tends not to have the same predatorial
personality'- as other violent offenders and may encounter unnecessary problems.
With the increase of mental health care for inmates in the state of California, for
example, special groups have been developed specifically for incarcerated individuals
whose crimes involve issues of abuse (Coletnan v. Wilson, 1995). More programs such
as these need to be instituted on a national level and further research needs to be
conducted regarding the effects of incarceration on these individuals.
An additional area that needs continued research is Munchausen syndrome by
proxy. Without the proper understanding of this form of familial homicide and how-
it originates, the risk of more unnecessary deaths is inevitable.
IMPACT OF MENTAL HEALTH LAW DOCTRINES
ON FAMILIES: PATERNALISM AND PARENS
PATRIAE
Introduction
At 6 years of age, a child was admitted indefinitely to a state hospital. The child's
parents sought treatment for their son because of his aggressive and uncontrollable
behavior. His diagnosis was "hyperkinetic reaction of childhood." Four years later,