GUILTY TX - Dr. Rick Lohstroh, 41, shot to death, Katy, 27 Aug 2004

Update

(12/29/04 - HOUSTON) — The 10-year-old Katy boy accused of murdering his father this summer is now the face of an unofficial psychiatric disorder that may have lead to his father's death.
 
I feel for the family and the young boy because I don't think he understood the finality of death. Yet, I don't think he should get to walk away from his actions. There needs to be some punishment regardless of any type of disorder. He, whether full of hatred and poison, still made a decision to kill his father. Maybe that's harsh, but at some point people must pay for their decisions or our world will have no boundaries.
 
While Im not big on folks using mental defenses to get away with crimes, I do think in cases like this, it is often an adult that is at fault. Many times after a divorce, parents use the kids to get back at the ex spouse. This boy is ten years old, not capable of thinking as an adult IMO. Was he worng? Of course he was. Is he at fault? Im not so sure about that.
 
princessmer81 said:
I am going to say this and then duck ...
Why have a gun in your home in the first place? Why would you want your child to know how to handle a gun at a young age? This seems scary and dangerous to me. What if your children get in an argument and one of them goes and gets the gun out? - I remember my brother chasing me around with a steak knife once while my parents were out - I shudder to think what could have happened had there been a gun in the house.
So should we throw out all the steak knives? Just joking. But I'm on the same page as Pandora. And teaching your childen about guns for another reason. If they know what it is, and what it does, they will know to get the heck out of the area when one appears, or how to use/disable/get rid of one should they ever find themselves in possession of one (especially if it is through another child)
 
I had heard about this story quite sometime ago, and the bells went off. "Parental Alienation Syndrome" is a very real problem indeed. It's interesting reading, and will highlight the struggles some non-custodial parents face in dealing with a malicious ex-spouse. Sounds like the child was as victimized as the father in this case.

http://www.deltabravo.net/custody/malice.htm
 
OB RN said:
I had heard about this story quite sometime ago, and the bells went off. "Parental Alienation Syndrome" is a very real problem indeed. It's interesting reading, and will highlight the struggles some non-custodial parents face in dealing with a malicious ex-spouse. Sounds like the child was as victimized as the father in this case.

http://www.deltabravo.net/custody/malice.htm
It is also possible the father really was a major 🤬🤬🤬, and the boy really did not want to go visit him, and no one gave the boy a choice, so he chose the only option he thought he had. We don't know the whole situation.

Not to downplay that this was unacceptable, but I have known many a child who DID NOT want to see the non-custodial parent (for whatever reason OF THEIR OWN) yet were forced to go on "visits". When do the kids get their say?
 
Ghostwheel said:
It is also possible the father really was a major 🤬🤬🤬, and the boy really did not want to go visit him, and no one gave the boy a choice, so he chose the only option he thought he had. We don't know the whole situation.

Not to downplay that this was unacceptable, but I have known many a child who DID NOT want to see the non-custodial parent (for whatever reason OF THEIR OWN) yet were forced to go on "visits". When do the kids get their say?
There's a big difference between not wanting to go for a visit, and being a victim of PAS. Many times, when kids become teenagers, they are involved with social activities that happen when there's scheduled weekend visitation. It's normal for teens to spend more time with friends at that age, than with their parents. Kids who are victims of PAS, however, have a very different reason for not visiting the other parent.

My husband & I have both been divorced. I've managed to keep my kids involved with their dad despite issues they've had with him along the way. They've been encouraged to respect him as their father (not always deserving). On the other side, my husband's children have been victimized by "malicious mother syndrome". You cannot imagine the craziness that comes from that household, we strongly suspect she has NPD. Interestingly, my own children have commented how their stepsiblings seem "emotionally blunted" when they are here - like they are afraid to have fun, smile, enjoy themselves. The longer they are here, the less guarded they become, until it's almost time to go back to mom's house.
 
A judge has ordered independant blood analysis to see how much Prozac was in the boys system at the time of the shooting. There is a conflict between the time the doctor gave to transition from the daily to weekly dose and the time the weekly dose was given. Apparently the attorneys in this case have reason to believe the boy was being overdosed.

The boy's mother violated the gag order imposed by both the Harris County and Galveston County judges by granting an interview to Dateline and a local news station. :silenced: The interviews can be see at www.helpstoppas.com under Rick's Story and News Stories. The hearing is set for March 3rd on both violations.

The boy, now 11, is still being detained in the Harris County Juvenille Detention building. The boy's grandparents were granted custody of him and his younger brother. The Judge has denied several requests from the boy's grandparent to have the boy released to their custody.

Documents relating to the case including police reports, polygraph examination results, court testimony, and handwritten letters by the mother and grandmother can be found at www.helpstoppas.com.

The boys grandparents are asking that another attorney, not the one hired by the boy's mother, be appointed to the case. So far, their requests have been denied, but it appears the grandparents are going to continue the appeals process. Due to the question of representation the case is not moving forward at this time.
 
blueclouds said:
I'm also wondering BIRDIEBOO, IF the mother actually put him up to it? It sounds like a very terrible divorce.
No doubt about it. It seems like the mother had been "grooming" the child since the divorce to murder his father. Now there is reason to believe that she overdosed him on Prozac just prior to the shooting.

The mother had called police to her home on a domestic call with her NEW husband just weeks before the shooting. Why? Because the new hubby hid all the guns in the house and wouldn't tell her where they were. She went ballistic and started hitting him. He tried to call the police but she ripped the phone out of the wall. After she kicked him in the groin he ran to the neighbor's house and called the police. When the police showed up she pulled the "poor me" act and showed them some marks that one detective said looked "self inflicted". So, the new hubby had a protective order issued against him and the case went to court. He was still under the protective order when the shootings took place. I guss she found the guns, eh?

I hear that murder by proxy qualifies for the death penalty. :eek:
 
WOW - That is one twisted woman. Hopefully the whole truth will come out, and the soon-to-be ex husband will be able to testify for the boy's defense. It really does sound like this woman was grooming this child to murder his father, and this stepfather was doing everyting he could to prevent it. How sad.
 
ABC13 Eyewitness News
(03/03/05 - GALVESTON, TX) — A young boy accused of murdering his father will stay in juvenile custody. He's already been detained for months now.

In court, the 11-year-old learned he will stay in a Harris County juvenile jail for now. He's been there since police say he killed his father, Rick Lohstroh, 41, in August 2004.

On Thursday in court the boy's grandparents asked a judge to release him into their custody, so that he could be placed in a private treatment facility. But the judge turned them down, explaining the 11-year-old won't be released until his grandparents can work out an arrangement with a facility that will care for the boy 24hours a day.

Full story here
 
princessmer81 said:
I am going to say this and then duck ...
Why have a gun in your home in the first place? Why would you want your child to know how to handle a gun at a young age? This seems scary and dangerous to me. What if your children get in an argument and one of them goes and gets the gun out? - I remember my brother chasing me around with a steak knife once while my parents were out - I shudder to think what could have happened had there been a gun in the house.

I agree. I won't have a gun in my house. Kid's knowing how to use them properly doesn't keep them from misusing them when they want to show off or if they become extremely angry. Many of the kids who have shot other kids knew gun safetly and also knew it was wrong to shoot someone....they did it anyway. Kid's don't have the judgement we do...and they don't always follow the rules we give them...especially as teenagers or when friends are around. I would also be afraid that should one of my kids ever become deeply depressed...they wouldn't care about what I had taught them...they might kill themselves over something stupid like a failed class or a break up with a girl/boy friend.....Also, accidents happen....better safe than sorry.
 
cathieq said:
Boy, 12, to be held responsible for dad's death
...The finding is comparable to a guilty verdict in an adult criminal court...The youth, whose name the Chronicle is withholding because of his age, faces a sentence ranging from probation to 40 years in custody...
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4224391.html
And yet the mother was not charged for leaving the firearm where the children could have access? I am a firm believer in gun safes.
 
Quote from Dad:
"Never pick up a weapon unless you plan to fire it; never fire a weapon unless you intend to kill someone." (Target practice exluded, of course.)[/QUOTE]
In my opinion:

Never pickup a gun unless you are capable of firing it if needed and never fire a weapon unless your life is being threatened and there is no other way to survive.
 
Ghostwheel said:
So should we throw out all the steak knives? Just joking. But I'm on the same page as Pandora. And teaching your childen about guns for another reason. If they know what it is, and what it does, they will know to get the heck out of the area when one appears, or how to use/disable/get rid of one should they ever find themselves in possession of one (especially if it is through another child)
I've raised my daughter with guns in the house. She began to learn about them with a bbgun years ago, and is now a sharpshooter with a .22 and is ready to move to a bigger gun. She's responsible, though - and knows the only time it's aimed at a person - is if her back is against the inside of the closet and the person is coming into the closet after her.

I can see both sides of the arguement though. If the gun safety education is not good - well, we all know a little knowledge can be dangerous!
 
From October 2011:

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-t...lly-shot-dad-in-2004-sentenced-to-2234060.php

A teenager who was 10 years old when he fatally shot his father in 2004 in Katy has been sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to murder. His probation ends when he turns 18, in January...

The teen was sentenced in 2006 to 10 years behind bars. After that conviction was overturned last year, the boy was freed on bail while awaiting trial...

The 17-year-old... spent four years in juvenile jail, half of which was waiting for trial.
 

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