TX - Scott Buchholtz-Sanchez, 3 wks, decapitated, San Antonio, July 2009 *Insanity*

[MomofBoys]

This story is horrible.

What is the fix, though? People will argue against prison/DP because she, most likely, is mentally ill. Yet clearly this woman is a danger to herself and others. Lifetime incarceration in a mental health facility? Sterilization?

PPP doesn't usually happen in a bubble. Most of the time, the mother had other psychiatric dxs. This baby was failed not just by its mother, but by all the people in that home. As someone who has suffered throughout her life from obsessive-thought OCD and depression, I can tell you it doesn't take much to notice someone's psychological pain. When I was younger, my mom could tell the day I had an onset of an attack because I looked and acted sick.

I believe this woman was probably ill, but it does bother me that PPP will become the defense fallback plan every time an infant is murdered. There are just sick people out there, and the legislation in Texas, etc, makes me very nervous.

 

[PMLsmom]

I am normally considered a VERY stable person...A rock of strength. When I had my son, I was in imbalance nightmare! I actually cut 14" off my hair. I know, not as this dramatic, but was dramatic for me. I also believe that moms should be tested...I took it out on my hair - not my son. Thank God for that.

 

[Knox]

Just when you think you can't be any sadder for the state of humanity... Poor little baby, he never had a chance.

Amen!

 

[STEADFAST]

The mother has history of being in psyche ward, her aunt says. I think her mental problems are way beyond and predate her pregnancy and the birth of this child.

WARNING: LINK CONTAINS VERY DISTURBING DETAILS
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j65NeeVH5ihfMyvu7qiBZWQBV-kgD99MV4U80

 

[Blue_Dolphin308]

WARNING: Graphic Description of the crime...

Spoiler

Police: Woman Kills Newborn, Eats Brain

A woman charged with murdering her 3 1/2-week-old son used a knife and two swords to dismember the child and ate parts of his body, including his brain, before stabbing herself in the torso and slicing her own throat, police said Monday.

http://cbs3.com/topstories/san.antonio.woman.2.1102762.html

 

[southcitymom]

The mother has history of being in psyche ward, her aunt says. I think her mental problems are way beyond and predate her pregnancy and the birth of this child.

WARNING: LINK CONTAINS VERY DISTURBING DETAILS
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j65NeeVH5ihfMyvu7qiBZWQBV-kgD99MV4U80

For some reason, I had a strong sense that this was something "larger" than PPP, which is "large" enough itself.

I do not know how I feel about legally trying to control procreation among people with a history of mental illness. As a general rule, the thought of any legislation controlling reproduction is anathema to me.

 

[CHICANA]

I almost threw up when I read this.

 

[CHICANA]

I agree and believe it should be absolutely mandatory with every single birth.

IDK. I see where you're coming from but I don't like the government mandating psych tests.
What do they do if the tests show PPP ?
Put the baby in foster care ?
Lock mom up ?
What if the test is wrong ?

 

[WhyaDuck?]

Dear Almighty, I hope she decapitated the baby first, before she did the other things described. Please, let that much pity be in this nightmare situation.

R.I.P. little Scott Wesley.

 

[Recovering-Lurker]

Police: Woman Kills Newborn, Eats Brain

A woman charged with murdering her 3 1/2-week-old son used a knife and two swords to dismember the child and ate parts of his body, including his brain, before stabbing herself in the torso and slicing her own throat, police said Monday.

http://cbs3.com/topstories/san.antonio.woman.2.1102762.html

Holy *bleep*!!!!! Poor baby.

 

[BeanE]

Rest in peace, precious baby Scott.

I just have no other words for this. I'm way beyond horrified. Poor, poor precious baby.

 

[believe09]

IDK. I see where you're coming from but I don't like the government mandating psych tests.
What do they do if the tests show PPP ?
Put the baby in foster care ?
Lock mom up ?
What if the test is wrong ?

No, No, No-PPP and PPD are not a mental health issue per say. They are driven by hormone levels and what happens when the hormones drop after birth-does the body start to build back up to normal levels or is there a hiccup?

Take that "hiccup" and couple it with lack of sleep and other pressures associated with integrating a baby into a household and it can be a recipe for disaster. 1% of PPD cases are PPP, I believe. Hallucinations, rage, sadness, lack of touch with reality...these can be chemically induced by the brain as a reaction to giving birth. It is quantifiable with blood testing.

But take a woman who may have already suffered from an underlying disorder, and pile multiple pregnancies on her....and it can just get worse. Andrea Yates of course is a clear example. This woman may also very well be...I mean her other toddlers are still alive, but if she was in and out of psychiatric units AND the staff at those places were calling to see how she was doing, then there was cause for concern regarding her behavior. There were multiple people caring for the infant for a reason-OMG this poor family will have guilt forever knowing that giving the baby to her for a scant 3 hours was enough for it all to end this way...and I remember reading stories about when Yates was finally medicated sufficiently to end her psychosis-oh her grief at what she had done.

 

[barb0301]

It seems as if there may be a history of drug use by the mother also, according to this:

-"Rios said Sanchez did not have a criminal history related to mental illness, but police will investigate that further, and the district attorney's office will handle how Sanchez's mental state affected her actions.
There was one police report on file, from May 2008, when Sanchez's mother called police to report that Sanchez went to Austin and didn't return. In the report, the mother told police she believed that Sanchez went to Austin to use drugs and that Sanchez was not suffering from mental issues."

Also, in the same article, it talks about how hard it has been on the police officers who had to respond to the scene. They are being offered counseling to deal with the trauma. I can't imagine the horror they are having to live with.

RIP, dear baby boy, RIP.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/Unspeakable_tragedy_shakes_SAPD.html

 

[kgeaux]

There are just no words. :cry: Poor little baby boy. If the mother was so far gone that she was hearing voices, D@mn, the people living with her that didnt notice this woman needed help! Someone needs to pay for the death of this little angel. Rest in Peace, sweet baby..You're safe now!

Poor little one. I'm trying to picture him up in heaven being held by angels.

I do need to share about my experience with my nephew, who suffers from schizophrenia. He was very secretive about those voices. There was no "did y'all hear that?" or anything along those lines. Later, when he was medicated and doing well, he told us the voices said such awful things---he thought others could hear the voices, too---that he'd just try to ignore it, or distract us so we wouldn't pay attention to the terrible things being said.

I really don't know if my nephew is a "usual" case or not. But if this woman was hearing voices, it is possible she thought the best she could do was to distract her family from listening.

You'd be amazed how much people don't see when a woman is suffering from postpartum illness. Considering the age of the baby, I'm going to take a guess this mother suffered from postpartum psychosis. Now, before you say it's a bs illness let me tell you, it's very real. It's unfortunate this mother didn't get the help she needed.

The people living in the home may have believed the mother only suffered from baby blues. It can look like that to someone looking from the outside in. Until science figures out a way to read people's minds there's just no way to know the severity of an individual's postpartum illness. Usually not until it's too late.

Having been a sufferer of PPP, I just cannot condemn this woman. I am saddened for both her and her baby. The help is there.. we have to let women know it's okay to tell someone. Even the scariest things you may think or hear, you have to tell someone.. anyone! For you and your baby.

Thank you, brave one, for sharing your experience with us. I had PPD, never PPP, and I'm glad to read other posts which suggest there may be testing for this.

If this mom was suffering from PPP, if she was psychotic, doesn't that mean that at the moment of the murder, she didn't know right from wrong?

 

[momtective]

Police: Woman Kills Newborn, Eats Brain

A woman charged with murdering her 3 1/2-week-old son used a knife and two swords to dismember the child and ate parts of his body, including his brain, before stabbing herself in the torso and slicing her own throat, police said Monday.

http://cbs3.com/topstories/san.antonio.woman.2.1102762.html

Okay now, that just makes me wanna uke:

 

[momtective]

What do they do if the tests show PPP ?
Put the baby in foster care ?
Lock mom up ?

Maybe make sure mom is not left alone with baby until the next hormone test shows normal hormone levels. Maybe a contract signed with family members so she can be monitored.

 

[s_finch]

NOt many people are aware of Post Partum Psychosis. I had an aunt that suffered from PPP about 50 years ago when PPP wasn't even a diagnosis. Right after the birth of her baby, she flipped. Her mom and sistr had to raise the baby while my aunt was in and out of hospitals. The doctors labeled her as schizophrenic, put her in a pych ward and over many weeks administered the maximum does of electro schock therapy. I don't know that the treatment didn't make her worse because it was 2 years before she began to return to normal. During her PPP she would try to jump out of a moving car, tore up her marriage license, grabbed a knife during a family conversation and glared at the family members (for no discernible reason) and at that moment everyone thought she was going to attack them but after a few moments she put the knife down, she cut verses out of the Bible and hid them, she was in a zombie state, didn't even realize when she was spoken to, completely out of touch with reality. My aunt came from an all american, down to earth family and if this could happen to her it is no doubt a very real and serious problem and could happen to anyone. When my aunt recovered, she raised her daughter, led a solid productive life and no one would have ever known she had been mentally ill. Thankfully though, my aunt followed medical advice and didn't have any more children. By the way, the doctors explained it 50 years ago to my aunts family that my aunt had an infection in her womb that went to her brain and that was what caused her problem.

I feel so sorry for the Sanchez woman and her family. The fact that her mom thought she went to Austin to use drugs (which she might have) and didn't have a mental disorder to me says the mom was in denial. For a person to do what Sanchez did, she is suffering from an extreme mental illness, or illnesses. Perhaps the birth worsened her pre-existing conditions and lead to PPP or caused a severe case of PPP, I use the word "severe" because while some women with PPP might injure their baby or themselves I don't think it's too often they then partake in cannabilism.

I've always felt sorry for Andrea Yates and feel the same for Sanchez.

BTW, I disagree with required testing for PPP as I believe our government screws up most things it gets it's hands into. Educating families about PPP is the only hope in cases like this so that they can be watchful and get help for the PPP sufferer before it is too late. Realistically, PPP is going to continue to go unnoticed/untreated and horrors like this are going to continue to happen. Our only hope is that with education the statistics will improve.

MOO

 

[southcitymom]

It seems as if there may be a history of drug use by the mother also.......

(respectfully snipped)

This is very often the case among people with mental illness.

 

[momtective]

The Newborn Screening Laboratories (NBS) provide testing services in support of the Texas Newborn Screening Program. The program currently screens every infant born in Texas, testing for 27 disorders. http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/LAB/newbornscreening.shtm

Why not test mother's for PPP? It only makes sense to do so.

 

[s_finch]

Poor little one.


If this mom was suffering from PPP, if she was psychotic, doesn't that mean that at the moment of the murder, she didn't know right from wrong?

If it is determined she was truly psychotic or had a psychotic break (which to me is a no brainer in this case because 1) she immediately admitted to LE what she had done and 2) she apparently didn't try to cover up the crime, escape, etc...) then she should be found guilty and sentenced to life in a psych ward for the criminally insane. Is she insane? Maybe, maybe not. She could be schizophrenic or suffering from PPP or both at the same time. If she had a psychotic break at the time of the murder then at that moment she was completely out of touch with reality and was "insane". Those who are insane don't know that what they did is wrong, they tell on themselves and don't attempt a cover up or alibi.

What would be an inustice is if she is found to be schizophrenic or suffering PPP or is insane, for our justice system to sentence her to a non-psych ward. Often the criminally psychotic are treated with drugs enough so they are brought back ito a type of reality only to then be put in general popuation and/or sentenced to death. This was a big dispute in the Andrea Yates case and many felt she shouldn't have gotten life in a psych unit but should have gone to general popuation. insanity, schizophrenia, psychosis are real illnesses and those suffering shouldn't be punished in the same way as the non-mentally ill.