Prof. Susan Hatters Friedman1
1Case Western Reserve University, United States
Biography:
Susan Hatters Friedman, MD, MSt, DFAPA is a forensic and reproductive psychiatrist. Dr. Friedman serves as the inaugural Phillip J. Resnick Professor of Forensic Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University, and also as professor of psychiatry, pediatrics, reproductive biology, and law. She has also worked in New Zealand, at the University of Auckland, Mason Clinic, and the Auckland Regional Women’s Correctional Facility.
Dr. Friedman is past president of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (AAPL). Dr. Friedman has also served as Chair of the Law and Psychiatry committee at the Group for Advancement of Psychiatry (GAP).
Abstract:
Forensic psychiatrists and psychologists are called upon to evaluate mothers who have killed their children. Lawyers may be tasked with their prosecution or defence. In this presentation, we will review the motives of mothers who commit filicide. Resnick initially described these motives based on review of the world literature a half-century ago and they have since been refined. Motives include: Fatal Maltreatment, Unwanted Child, Partner Revenge, Altruistic, and Acutely Psychotic. These motives will be described in detail, and case examples shared from the public domain. We will discuss the overlap of motive with mental illness. Finally, we will discuss the gender bias often seen in maternal filicide cases.