GUILTY TN - Four Gardner children stabbed to death, Memphis, 1 July 2016 *mother arrested*

[perfectingpink]

The Latest: Mother Cut 4 Children's Throats in Apartment

Court documents say a Tennessee mother killed four of her children by cutting their throats and sheriff's deputies found a large butcher knife with what appeared to be blood on it in an apartment were the killings took place.

The victims were a 4-year-old boy; a 3-year-old girl; a 2-year-old girl; and a 6-month-old girl. A 7-year-old boy escaped the attack. All five children were Gardner's.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/latest-children-stabbed-memphis-mother-custody-40299085

 

[Sunshine95]

My understanding is that, yes, it can come on quickly and can happen to anyone (that's had a baby that is).

I haven't read up on PP issues for years. Is sudden paranoia part of it? Or does it suggest a possibility of something else?

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

Thank you TeaTime.....that was my first thought upon reading that the mother was apparently stressed. FGS don't get f'ing pregnant if you are already overwhelmed with one child. I did it.....it works. You use birth control or you simply DON'T HAVE SEX if a condom isn't available. It's not that difficult. I have one grown son now and, being a single and divorced mother at the time, I knew when he was young that I could barely afford to keep him fed and clothed. No way was I going to get pregnant again when I couldn't afford it or deal with another child.

 

[x_files]

Not again!!!

I've typed and deleted my response to reading this thread several times. I'm having difficulty finding the right words to express the absolute heartbreak over the horrific loss of four innocents at the hands of the one who gave them life! [emoji174]

My primary concern is for the 7 year old boy who survived. He needs all the love and support imaginable to heal. It is only right that he live the happiest life possible, for himself and in honor of his siblings. I offer my condolences to the family who has suffered such tremendous loss.

The investigation is in its early stages, so we don't yet know whether or not MH issues played a role. As soon as I read this thread, I immediately thought of the "Angels Coronado" the name given to the three young girls murdered by their mother here in California:

CA - Sophia, 2, Yazmine, 1, & Xenia Coronado, 2 mos, murdered, 20 May 2014
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...-murdered-20-May-2014&p=10560603#post10560603

It remains to be seen whether or not there is a parallel regarding PP psychosis. The topic can be highly polarizing. With my undergrad studies in forensic psychology, I understand these diagnoses clinically; however, JLSChook made excellent points upthread. The dichotomy is undeniable. IMO/JMO/etc.

All I know for sure is that four precious, innocent little ones, who did not ask to be born, were brutally and heinously killed. They suffered, and I can't help but imagine their pain and terror.

This should never happen to a child, but we WSers know that it does and it will. We ask, over and over, "When will this stop?"

I wish I knew the answer to that question.

:rose: :rose: :rose: :rose:


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It will slow down when we have access to free or inexpensive birth control, and sex education.
No woman should have to have that many children in such a short period of time.
Not excusing her actions but that's asking a lot of one person and a f/t job on top of it. Where was dad?

 

[Openminded]

I obviously don't know her situation but there are women who don't believe in birth control. Perhaps she felt she was supposed to have as many children as she could and didn't realize she couldn't handle them. I just hope counseling is available for her oldest child and that he has a good support system.

As for parents killing their children -- that has unfortunately been going on from the beginning of time and as sad as it is we all know it will never stop.

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

Photo of the mother

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

Photo of the murdered children:

l

 

[loganone]

Not only is this local to me, i know the mother. Such a tragedy.

Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

Hi Loganone.....I don't know if you are comfortable with it or not, but is there any insight you can share with us regarding the mother, the family and this tragedy. If not, that is alright. I just have to ask because this horrific tragedy has (obviously) really upset myself and a lot of other Websleuths.

Thank you for joining this thread. I'm pray for those poor little babies who are now Angels, and the surviving child & father who must now live the rest of their lives and survive in the horrific aftermath. I can't imagine.

 

[Everyday Grace]

The grandmother of a 7-year-old boy who authorities say escaped a knife attack by his mother says the woman was “a sweet, young lady” and she does not understand what could have led her to attack her children.

Sonya Clayton and about 30 other people attended a candlelight prayer vigil for four children who sheriff’s officials say were fatally stabbed by their mother in an apartment in unincorporated Shelby County on Friday.

Sonya Clayton said she has not seen her former daughter-in-law for a few years. Clayton said she is shocked that Shanynthia Gardner could do what authorities say she did.

Sonya Clayton said her son is not doing well, and he wants to see his son soon. Sheriff’s officials say the boy has been under protective supervision.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nati...31f8fe-40b4-11e6-9e16-4cf01a41decb_story.html

Deputies were called to an apartment complex in unincorporated Shelby County on Friday afternoon. When they arrived at Shanynthia Gardner’s apartment, they found her with superficial cuts to her neck and wrists, the affidavit said. Deputies also found four children with “severe lacerations to the throat,” the document said.

Two children were found in the living room — Y was in her baby carrier and S was lying next to the carrier. The other two victims were in a bedroom.

The affidavit said D was able to escape the apartment and run up to a man, yelling that his mother had stabbed his sister.

The man told officers that he saw Shanynthia Gardner come outside with a large knife in her hand, then re-enter the residence. Deputies found the knife in the apartment, the affidavit said.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nati...11296e-40b2-11e6-9e16-4cf01a41decb_story.html

 

[Everyday Grace]

Sonya Clayton, the grandmother of 7-year-old DC, said the news made her sick and she has not eaten or slept since she found out her grandson was chased by his mother with a butcher knife.

Clayton said she was shocked when she heard about the deaths and that D still has not been released into the custody of his father. Gardner has known her son since they were in the eighth grade, she said.

Clayton said she was still trying to make sense of why the murders happened.

"I forgive her," she said. "I know this was not her. I know this was the work of the devil. I love Shanynthia wholeheartedly still."

Clayton joined about 30 people, including neighbors and family members, at a vigil Saturday night at the Greens at Irene apartment complex where the four children were killed. Attendees held red and white candles and had moments of prayer for the four children. Clayton said her son was too upset to attend the vigil.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/new...her-four-children-36a-385326681.html?d=mobile

 

[Blondie in Spokane]

From Everyday Grace's link:


"The affidavit said D was able to escape the apartment and run up to a man, yelling that his mother had stabbed his sister."

"The man told officers that he saw Shanynthia Gardner come outside with a large knife in her hand, then re-enter the residence. Deputies found the knife in the apartment, the affidavit said."

Good God!

 

[kimi_SFC]

Presser with Sheriff Oldham:

https://youtu.be/zlbZnuxPGO4

ETA:
Source:

Sheriff: Stabbing victims ranged in age from 6 months to 4 years
http://www.commercialappeal.com/new...0bb-e053-0100007f5283-385307211.html?d=mobile


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[Everyday Grace]

WREG has confirmed Garnder was a part-time employee of ALSAC, the fundraising arm of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

She worked at the off-site call center in Cordova.

On the day she went missing [March 19], she was later located at St. Francis Hospital Emergency Room.

http://wreg.com/2016/07/03/mother-charged-with-murder-following-deaths-of-4-children/

 

[Everyday Grace]

The March incident appears to have occurred in 2015 rather than "back in March" as previously reported.

According to reports obtained by WREG, Shanynthia Gardner was reported missing back on March 19 just days after telling her family she felt like someone was trying to hurt her and her family.

The behavior started on March 16 when Gardner reportedly left work suddenly, picked up her kids and left. (Snipped and bolded by EG)

More at the link:
http://wreg.com/2016/07/02/mother-of-four-children-killed-feared-for-familys-safety/

http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...y-Memphis-1-July-2016&p=12670393#post12670393

WREG has clumsily corrected the information:

WREG discovered another police document from 2015 that stated Gardner was reported missing back on March 19 just days after telling her family she felt like someone was trying to hurt her and her family.

As reported by the Memphis Commercial Appeal via WXIA:

Shanynthia Gardner does not have a documented history of mental illness, but she did briefly go missing in March 2015, according to a report from the Memphis Police Department. Her husband told police she was feeling stressed and having problems at work.

"She also has been feeling that someone is trying to harm her and her family," the report said.

The report stated Gardner left for work early on March 16, 2015, and "picked the kids up and left." That night, she called her husband around 11 p.m. from Corinth, Miss., where she had no family or friends, the report said.

http://www.11alive.com/mb/news/nati...give-mom-accused-of-killing-4-kids_/262541248

Included in that reporting:

A charging document stated deputies were called to "a wounding call where four juveniles were found deceased upon Deputies' arrival" at 12:28 p.m. CT Friday.

The children's father, Martin Gardner, spoke to Shanynthia Gardner on the phone at 12:50 p.m., and she admitted to killing their four children, the affidavit said. Deputies recovered a bloody butcher knife from the home.

 

[flourish]

While I think we need more mental health providers and easier access, I cannot agree with your statement about BC. Birth control is available in every drug store, grocery store, mega-store, convenience store, bar room, club and fuel station all over the country. It is called a condom. It requires no doctor's appointment, no prescription, does not alter the body's hormonal balance, cause cancer, HBP or blood clots and it works.

There is a FREE BC which, when understood and used correctly, works very well. It is called the rhythm method but requires that one can count, use a calendar and control one's desires for a few days each month.

I understand abstinence is just too much to ask of people because immediate and instant satisfaction is preferred over planning and being responsible for one's own reproductive system but no one can claim that we do not have easy, unfettered access to BC.

"Although effectiveness varies, in the first year of typical use an estimated 13 out of 100 women practicing the rhythm method for birth control will get pregnant."

http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/rhythm-method/basics/risks/prc-20013489

This post comes across as rather condescending. I can count. I can check my vaginal mucus with the best of them. But I would never use that as my primary birth control. I personally know one couple who does and has successfully for nearly 2 decades and that's great, but it's not as uncomplicated a system as you present. Easy, inexpensive (which might mean free in some cases) access to a wide variety of forms of birth control should be a priority. What works for one may not work for all and there's no need to be judgy about it.

 

[Everyday Grace]

More information lacking in consistency and clarity (it is clear in both pieces that the reference is to MG, the father of the four youngest children):

According to relatives, the couple married two years ago.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...pen-butchers-knife-charged-degree-murder.html

Family members said the couple recently got married.

http://www.wsmv.com/story/32356692/scso-4-children-stabbed-mother-in-custody

 

[Everyday Grace]

Mental Health experts weigh in

Dr. Joel Reisman, Psychiatrist with the University of Tennessee Medical Center, said the murder of children by a mother to this extent is a rare occurrence.

"This is something that is very rare," Dr. Reisman said. "When it does occur, you hear about it on the news. The majority of the time when this occurs it is with a mother who has a form of mental illness."

Dr. Reisman said although family members and loved ones may say they did not see any signs of something like this happening, there were signs that were likely missed.

Dr. Reisman said the mental health resources are limited in Memphis and that is why he recommends going to the ER if there is a mental health emergency.

However, Dr. Diana Barnes, Psy.D. with the PostPartum Health Center, said postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis are very different, and therefore the symptoms will be different.

"I do want to make an important distinction here," Dr. Barnes said. "Postpartum depression is a very different kind of disorder than postpartum psychosis. And of course we don't know, and a lot of information needs to come in to ascertain exactly what happen. In my 20 years, patients of postpartum depression are not likely to be involved in these types of situations. This would be more along the lines of psychosis if that is what occurred."

Barnes said the symptoms will be more pronounced.

It is still unclear if the mother has mental health issues.

More on this at the link:
http://m.wmctv.com/wmctv/db/381569/content/a50R7NsI

 

[Everyday Grace]

Regarding questions as to whether the father of the four children (MG) was a physical and financial presence in their lives, this from a long time friend of his:

Dickson is a realtor and said he was working with the Gardners to buy their first home.

The article indicates that he recently showed the couple a listing.

(Reporters and editors who insist on using the term "recently" should be flogged with an old-school typewriter correction tape. Just kidding about a flogging lest anyone take that literally. Not kidding that, IMO, use of the word is often "lazy" reporting/editing that can lead to confusion among the readership/viewership audience.)

http://wreg.com/2016/07/02/family-friends-remember-murdered-siblings/

Also in that piece, some (presumably) clarifying information regarding the March 2015 events:

According to Memphis Police, Shanynthia's family reported her missing once in 2015.

They found her a day later at the ER.

Wish I could read the original MPD document.

(Gonna be "lazy" right here myself and avoid attempting to reconstruct what appears to be the accurate sequence of the March 2015 events. That is something I may endeavor to compile sometime today.)

I'm not well-read on post-partum depression or post-partum psychosis, so I don't have a clue if the following math is relevant.

This "math" is loose because I'm not working with an actual birth date of the youngest child.

July 1, 2016 -- SG killed four of her children, including a six-month-old infant.

January 1, 2016 -- Approximate date of birth for the youngest child.

March 19, 2015 -- Roughly 9.5 months prior to an approximate date of birth of the youngest child.

Just wondering if the onset of her last pregnancy could have any correlation to the March 2015 event.

 

[x_files]

I obviously don't know her situation but there are women who don't believe in birth control. Perhaps she felt she was supposed to have as many children as she could and didn't realize she couldn't handle them. I just hope counseling is available for her oldest child and that he has a good support system.

As for parents killing their children -- that has unfortunately been going on from the beginning of time and as sad as it is we all know it will never stop.

This is where education on parenting will help. It's not healthy to have that many children and a f/t job on top of five f/t jobs already.
Mental health help, education and free birth control can help prevent this happening to others.