You're very kind, thank you. Yes and no, really. I can only base it off of what I've discovered walking this path so bear with my answer, please, it isn't quite black and white.
For my ex, his PD was already evident by age 13. He'd experienced horrific abuse from a very young age. Eventually he was removed from his parents and placed in a boys home. There, in among a lot of very troubled kids, he learned the tools necessary to become an abuser and criminal. By 14 he'd experimented with drugs, alcohol, animal abuse, and arson (I'd first learn of this 30 years later). He saw a psychiatrist all through his teens but this was the 70s when we knew a lot less about the trauma of child abuse and the impact of PD. He wasn't diagnosed NPD/APD, until his early 40s, following a suicide attempt.
His family is very toxic and his mother felt immense guilt over abuse she allowed. As a result, she never held him accountable for his anger or his actions. He could treat people however he wanted, do whatever he wanted, and there would be no repercussions, in part, because she herself feared him. My ex is a very angry 13 year old constantly lashing out at the world for his mistreatment. He's suspended in that state. His adult life consisted of all of us, myself included, making excuses for his behavior rather than holding him accountable.
A very early dx (which many psychs don't like to do) of a PD may make a difference - depending on the PD. BPD has shown the most success in terms of treatment. There is no cure but there are tools that can be taught to someone personality disordered to limit the harm they cause to themselves and others. It requires a lot of determination, time, and effort. Friends and family need to recognize red flags - Jodi's behavior couldn't have begun when she met Travis (though PD sometimes worsens with age and sometimes also lessens) so there had to be signs. IME, many of these signs are confused for someone simply being a troubled teen or problem child.
The short answer is yes - a million things could have happened differently to make her less dangerous but the biggest problem remains that no one around her ever perceived how deeply disturbed she was in the first place. So I just don't know how you'd fix that. Our family faced the exact same issue when my ex was arrested for having drugged and raped his 14 year old niece - we knew he was capable of violence - but none of us could ever have predicted he'd do something so heinous. So, the answer also has to be no because a psychopath is capable of doing things you can't contemplate or prepare for and they don't believe rules should apply to them.
I hope that helps - apologies for the length. :blushing:
