Neonaticide, , and : A Review of the Literature

Steven E. Pitt, DO and Erin M. Bale, BA

This article summarizes and reviews the literature on , infanticide, and filicide. A literature review was conducted using the Medline database: the cue terms neonaticide, infanticide, and filicide were searched. One hundred-fifteen articles were reviewed; of these, 51 are cited in our article. We conclude that while infanticide dates back to the beginning of recorded history, little is known about what causes to their children. To this end, further research is needed to identify potential perpetrators and to prevent subsequent acts of murder by a .

For many, the murder of a child by his or systems, motives, filicide and , her own parent is an unfathomable act. In methods. victims, Muchausen by proxy an effort to learn more about this subject, syndrome (MBPS), sudden we reviewed the literature on neonaticide, syndrome (SIDS), severely handicapped infanticide, and filicide. Our review, newborns, and the disposition of offend- which generated 115 articles, was limited ers. Any one of the aforementioned sub- to the race. A significant number ject areas offers the investigative poten- of the articles reviewed contained similar tial for an individually focused article. and/or repetitive information. Conse- For the purpose of this article, each se- quently, we selected 51 articles that best lected topic is reviewed and summarized. captured the essence of our subject mat- The intent of including an abridged and ter. Several areas of interest were identi- condensed summary of multiple areas is fied as necessary for inclusion in this to provide the reader with an overview of article, including a review of the histori- several topics related to . cal and cultural aspects of our topic, in addition to a discussion of classification Definition of Terms Infanticide is the term most commonly Dr. Pitt is thc Director of Forensic Psychiatric Serviccs at Arizona Hospital and an Assistant Clinical Lec- used by authors who have written about turer in thc Department of at the Univcrsity child . In the interest of clarity of Arizona Health Sciences Center, Tucson, AZ. E. M. Bale is a graduate student in Clinical Psychology at Sam and consistency, we will use the terms Houston Statc Univcrsity, Huntsvillc, TX. Address cor- employed by ~esnick':i~zfanricide is a respondence to: Steven E. Pitt, DO, Arizona State Hos- pital, 2500 East Van Buren, Phoenix, AZ 85008. general term for child murder; filicide

Bull Am Acad Psychiatry , Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 375 Pitt and Bale refers to cases in which the murderer is a turned to "heaven." The nostrils of the parent of the child; neonaticide is the unwanted child were then covered with term used for children who are slain paper soaked in water.4 within the first 24 hours of . In 1927, it was understood that child- birth and lactation entail a severe stress History on women. Under certain circumstances, For the lay person, no is more this stress was believed to cause insanity, difficult to comprehend than the killing of during the course of which at by their own parents.' However, infanticide and were ~ommon.~ infanticide dates back to the beginning of Filicide continues to contribute to over- .recorded history. In ancient civilizations, all . Modern reasons for children were regarded as omens from the the murder of one's own child include the gods. Infants born with physical abnor- inability of the mother to care for the malities were viewed as punishment for child, illegitimacy, greed for power or objectionable behavior by parents or so- money, the manipulation of size or cietal elder^.^ These children were rou- composition, and massive fearldenial.' tinely sacrificed to palliate existing super- stitions. The ill were viewed as an Cross-Cultural Phenomenon inappropriate drain on scarce resources. The slaying of children is an interna- Sickly or weak children were often inten- tional phenomenon. Cases of infanticide tionally killed or left to die from expo- have been documented around the world. sure. In ancient Egypt, healthy children Once a tradition of infanticide is devel- were entombed with their deceased par- oped, customs encouraging psychological ents to provide comfort and companion- distancing between mother and neonate ship. The Chinese and Japanese believed become institutiona~ized.~Hence, even as female infants were a financial burden, social conditions become altered, infanti- and therefore most were drowned. In an- cide is likely to remain in the cultural cient Greece and Rome, unwanted or de- repertoire.' In certain Eskimo tribes in formed infants were exposed on dung , sex ratios of children, along with heaps to be devoured by wild beast^.^ anthropological investigations, suggest a Under , pntria potestas recog- rate of 66 percent.8 nized a 's right to murder his chil- Among the Kallars of Madurai, , the dren.' In , mabiki, which originally destruction of a female infant is viewed referred to the thinning of vegetable psychologically in the same light as abor- sprouts on the farm, was the term used to tion."n , the birth of a daughter has describe infanti~ide.~After delivering a traditionally been accompanied by disap- newborn, a would ask the father pointment and even shame."' if he wanted to keep the baby. If he did Over time, these outlooks have not, the midwife would terminate the changed little. The March 3, 1984, edition newborn's life in a custom called mo- of The People's Daily, a provincial Chi- dosu, whereupon the "godsend" was re- nese newspaper, acknowledged that the

376 Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 Neonaticide, Infanticide, and Filicide

". . . butchering, , and leaving to I. Altruistic ji'licide can be divided into die of female infants . . . has become a two subgroups. First, the offense may be grave social problem" (as quoted in The committed by parents who believe that Wall Street ~o~~rrzul'I). In Japan, between the child or hmily is facing an unbear- 1979 and 1986, there are 12 documented able, inescapable, impending doom. Sec- cases in which three or more consecutive ond, the parents may murder their chil- occurred.12 Also in Japan, dren in association with their own baby girls born in the year known as suicide. These parents often do not be- Hinoe-Unm. or Fire-Horse, are believed lieve that the child can exist without to be cursed with poor luck; therefore, the them. Japanese do not want baby girls to be 2. Acutely psychotic ,filicicle involves born during that time. The year of the parents who kill while from ep- Fire-Horse occurs every 60 years, and is ilepsy, delirium, or hallucinations. This based on the old Chinese almanac of 10 category contains those cases lacking any heavenly stems and 12 ; it last fell discernable motive for the crime. in 1966. The neonatal for 3. Urzwarzted childfilicide is committed baby Japanese girls in 1966, was 7.78 per because the infant was never, or is no 100,000 live births, compared to 4.97 in longer, wanted by the parents. This type all other years between 1961 and 1967.~ of murder is commonly committed due to In contemporary , a woman may illegitimacy or extramarital conception. abandon or neglect her infant, thereby 4. Acciderztul filicide is generally the indirectly killing it, but if she commits aftermath of "battered child syndrome." It infanticide, she is imprisoned.'" is accidental because the parent does not intend to kill the child. Classification Systems 5. Spouse revenge ,filicide describes Rcsearchers investigating the phenom- children who are murdered in order to enon of child murder have attempted to retaliate against perceived of construct organized classification sys- a spouse. The story of from Greek tems, whereby individual cases may be mythology is often cited as an example of identified and categorized. The objective this type of filicide. Medea killed her two of this work was to enhance the mental sons after discovering her husband's in- health professional's understanding of the fidelity. She then told him, "Thy sons are events which lead up to the offense and dead and gone. That will stab thy the perpetrator committing the offense, heart."15 and to assist in constructing appropriate Scott. d'Orban, and Bourget and preventative measures for the commis- Bradford have each proposed similar sion of subsequent offenses. classification systems. Scott'" also used In his review of 131 child murder a five-point classification to describe cases, ~esnick'~proposed a classification infanticide. However, his system is system for filicide. Resnick's categories based on the source of the impulse to were based on motives for murder. kill: (I) parents who eliminate an un-

Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 377 Pitt and Bale wanted child; (2) mercy killing; (3) ag- clinical situations: (1) pathological fili- gression attributable to gross mental pa- cide-altruistic motives, extended homi- thology; (4) stimulus arising outside of cide-suicide; (2) accidental filicide-bat- the victim; and (5) stimulus arising tered child syndrome, others; (3) from the victim. retaliating filicide; (4) Neonaticide-un- d'orban" gathered data on 89 women wanted child; and (5) paternal filicide. charged with the murder or attempted These classification systems offer var- murder of their children. The women ious perspectives through which investi- were admitted to prison during a six-year gators may view incidents of child mur- period between 1970 and 1975. Based on der. The identification of a particular his sample, d'Orban proposed a classifi- category within which a particular homi- cation system consisting of six groups cide may fit allows for a more focused (five of the groups were similar to Scott's investigation into the etiology of the in- categories and the sixth was adopted from dividual crime. Resnick): (1) battering mothers, all in- stances of sudden impulsive killing, ex- Perpetrators plosive temper, or stimulus arising from The development of successful treat- the victim (equivalent to Scott's group ment and prevention programs begins five); (2) rnentully ill mothers, diagnosis with the identification of potential perpe- of psychotic illness and depression trators. Several trends have become ap- (equivalent to Scott's group three, and parent in the literature, which point to a where the stimulus arose from depressive distinct perpetrator profile. Resnick'" re- reactions in group four); (3) neonuticides, viewed the cases of 34 mothers who had infants killed or attempted to be killed killed their children. He then divided within the first 24 hours of life (adopted these mothers into two groups: those who from Resnick); (4) retaliating women, ag- committed neonaticide and those who gression directed at the child was dis- committed filicide. The mothers in the placed from the spouse (equivalent to neonaticide group were significantly Scott's group four where the stimulus younger than those in the filicide group. arose from revenge); (5) unwanted clzil- Eighty-eight percent of the filicide moth- dren, were killed either by or ers were married, while 81 percent of the commission (equivalent to Scott's group neonaticide mothers were unmarried. In one): and (6) mercy killing, cases in reviewing the psychological health of which there was true suffering in the vic- these mothers, another trend emerged. tim and no gain for the mother (equiva- The women in the filicide group were lent to Scott's group two). much more likely to be depressed, psy- Bourget and Bradford'Qonsidered chotic, and to have attempted suicide.'" classifications of Resnick, Scott, and Hirschmann and ~chmitz" found that d'Orban and felt that a lack of consis- women who killed their illegitimate chil- tency remained. They suggested a system dren tended to be young, immature pri- that would encompass various types of miparas who were sexually submissive.

378 Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 Neonaticide, Infanticide, and Filicide had no history of criminal behavior, and pal perpetrators of filicide. As such, the rarely sought . They believe majority of the literature reviewed was these women have a "primary weakness focused on female assailants. Notwith- of the characterological superstructure." standing the scarcity of information about Hirschmann and ~chmitz'"also believe male perpetrators, we believe a review of that a second and smaller group of this information falls within the purvicw women exists. Thesc women have strong of our topic. instinctual drives and little ethical re- Campion et a12" described 12 filicidal straint. Members of this group are more men cxamined at a forensic psychiatric unit intelligent and egotistic, and are often between 1970 and 1982. The majority of promiscuous; they are customarily older, male offenders evidenced an impairmcnt in strong willed. and callous. The crime is their reality testing at the time of the of- not contradictory to their chosen life- fense. Most of the men studied were raised style.'", '"~ummcrsbach~' contends that with multiple developmental stressors, in- passivity is the single most important fac- cluding , parental abuse, and sepa- tor separating women who commit neo- ration from, or death of, parents. Nine of thc naticide from those who obtain abortions. 12 men had significant neurological or psy- Women elect to have abortions because chiatric disorders of childhood. Several had they are aware of their pregnancy and all been physically or sexually abused. Others of its accompanying implications; their had been placed in residential settings out- decisions are reasoned and grounded in side of the home for aggressive behavior or reality. They seek to immediately destroy maternal incompetence.'" Overall these the danger. men were not abusive before the offense. In Women who commit neonaticide gen- sharp contrast to regularly abusive , erally have made no plans for the birth or in whom is 9 of 12 men care of their child. They often conceal the studied had psychotic or organic impair- pregnancy throughout gestation from ment~.'~Misinterpretation of the child's be- both family and friends. Massive denial havior appears to be the primary motive in of the gravid state is a prominent feature paternal fi~icide.'~Child behavior was seen of this clinical situation. Thc denial can by the perpetrator as threatening, rejecting, be so powerful that it affects not only the or provocative." Men arc more likely than mother's own perception, but thosc of hcr women to use active methods of murder, family, friends, teachers, employers, and such as striking, squeezing, or stabbing.' even phy~icians.~'~erchow'%~ined that Despite the rare occurrence of paternal neo- the need to deny may be so powerful that naticide. the likelihood of a male offender even the biological manifestations of the increases substantially with the age of the pregnancy may be influenced. victim.'"

Filicidal Men Motives Females are identified in an over- Considering the seemingly inexplica- whelming number of cases as the princi- ble nature of these . an area of

Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 379 Pitt and Bale particular interest is the identification of not an ideal solution, would offer women the motives that cause perpetrators to a less cruel alternative than killing their murder their children. Fear seems to be a newborns. suggests that a rela- pronounced factor in the motivation for tionship exists between the availability neonaticide. Frequently, perpetrators are of abortion and neonaticide. ester" unwed mothers who live in terror of the showed that neonatal homicide rates were shame and guilt that accompany concep- lower in the 10 years following Roe v. tion without marriage. In 1826, scott2" Wade than in the 10 years before the case. eloquently described this dilemma: "A Another study illustrated that neonaticide delicate female, knowing the value of a is proportionally higher in rural areas, chaste reputation, and the infamy and dis- where abortion may not be socially ac- grace attendant upon the loss of that in- ceptable or available.28 Currently, the re- dispensable character and aware of the lationship between neonaticide and abor- proverbial uncharitableness of her own tion is inconclusive. Although there is sex, resolves in her distraction, rather descriptive evidence to support a correla- than encounter the indifference of the tion, it is not scientific in nature and world and banishment from society, to therefore cannot be a basis for conclusion what on more fortunate occa- at this time. Further investigation of this sions, it would have been her pride to topic is certainly warranted. cherish." Despite societal liberalization of al- Methods most 200 years, illegitimacy continues to Little has been written about the meth- generate trepidation. Similarly, among ods implemented in the murder of chil- single women, there was a profound fear dren older than one day. Available liter- of revealing the pregnancy to their own ature indicates that suffocation and mothers. The idea of being confronted strangulation are the most common meth- with their mothers' rejection generates ods of neonaticide, followed by, in order massive overwhelming anxiety.'" Fear of greatest frequency, head trauma, also plays a role in the commission of drowning, exposure, and stabbing.'' by married women. In However, numerous other means have these cases, the motivation for murder is been implemented in the killing of new- most often extramarital pregnancy. A borns. One case involved a six-week-old woman becomes pregnant by a man other infant who was determined to have been than her current spouse and is distraught deprived of approximately 10 days worth in light of the probable repercussions. of food and water.31 In , on two separate occasions, a 15- and 14-year-old Filicide and Abortion girl, respectively, was reported to have Some scholars believe that the in- killed her newborn by throwing him out a creased accessibility of abortion is a via- several-story window.22 Another account ble alternative to neonaticide. ~esnick'" concerned a live-born infant who was theorized that liberalized abortion, while thrown to the side of the roadway in a

380 Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 Neonaticide, Infanticide, and Filicide paper hag to be run over by a passing harm inflicted on the children of these vehic~e.'~~esnick'" described a method women is the carefully calculated result in which killed newborns by of a multifaceted psychological disorder. sticking a needle under their eyelid or into The likelihood of victimization cannot be the anterior fontanel. determined by gender, birth order, or fa- voritism. While some children suffering Victims from MBPS survive (often with extensive Based on data from 25 countries, it was psychological maladjustment), the litera- found that the homicide rate for children ture indicates the presence of a significant less than one year old was at least as high mortality rate in child victims and their or higher than the rate for adults." Daly siblings. In their comprehensive text, and ~ilson" took a representative sam- Hclrtirlg for Love, Schreier and ~ibow'~ ple of 60 cultures. Infanticide was found cite nunierous studies that describe case in 39 of these cultures. In their study of reports that document the relationship be- infanticide in the , Bro- tween child mortality and MBPS. How- zovsky and ~alit~~determined that in ever, Schreier and Libow point out that 1967, 45.6 percent of children killed in these same articles are anecdotal and cau- their first year of life were murdered tion that no definitive causative link has within the first 24 hours. World Health been identified between filicide and Organization statistics from 1977 to 1980 MBPS. reflect that outside of , young Sudden Infant Death Syndrome adults are at the highest risk for murder. Another occurrence that has been related In Europe, 12 of 22 countries have infants at the highest risk for murder. It was also to filicide is SIDS. In 1963, SIDS was found that as the overall homicide rate is identified as a certifiable .'8 reduced. the risk for young adults de- Following the introduction of this syn- creases, and the risk for infants increas- drome, Kukull and peterson" examined e~.'~In 1980, children under the age of 15 the trend in infant homicide rates. They accounted for one of every 25 homicide proposed that if homicide was a signifi- victims in the United States. Risk is as- cant cause of SIDS death, then the infant sociated with both race and sex, with homicide rate should have decreased male and nonwhite children more likely post-1963. Because the recorded rate of to be victims of child murder than female neonatal homicide remained essentially and white children."" unchanged, Kukull and Peterson con- MBPS, SIDS, and the plight of the cluded that SIDS are not usually severely handicapped newborn are three caused by homicide. These authors fur- additional conditions in which children ther claimed that "to stimulate the SIDS a have been fatally victimized. depressed mother would need to act with Munchauserz by Proxy Syndrome split second timing, knowledge of the de- Mothers who suffer from MBPS typically sired effect (petechiac) and use of a me- appear to be exceptional parents. The chanical medium which would achieve

Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 381 Pitt and Bale complete airway obstruction while pro- certificate in the presence of any suspi- ducing no attributable trauma." cion.") Ten years later, Kukull and Pcterson's Severely Handicapped Newborns assumption was questioned by Alan W. The issue of severely handicapped new- cashell." Cashell stated that Kukull and borns has raised passionate ethical de- Peterson's article contained neither dis- bate. Wc determined that this issue is cussion of crib death classification before directly related to the overall societal con- 1963 nor any case rcports, and therefore ception of child murder and is therefore could not be considered a conclusive ac- suitable for inclusion in this article. A count. cashell'" believed that the inci- severely defective newborn is one for dence of child that have been whom medical intervention is necessary attributed to SIDS is higher than currently for survival. Thcse children also have a estimated. One author reportcd that an poor posttreatment prognosis of minimal infant's airway can be occluded without functioning and little cognitive capacity.42 even disturbing sleep.40 A case currently The critical question is whether parents before the courts in New York involves a and/or medical professionals have the 47-year-old woman charged with killing right to withhold medical technology. (In her five children. All five died consccu- April 1982 in Bloomington, IN, the Su- tively of mysterious natural causes attrib- perior Court of Monroe County upheld uted to SIDS. A pediatrician who fol- the parents' decision to withhold treat- lowed two of thc children went so far as ment of their child when this decision was to publish a medical journal article about challenged by the Bloomington Hospital. how SIDS can run in . Over 20 This incident became known as the "Baby years later, the mother is in custody, Doe" case, and sparked considerable pub- charged with smothcring three children lic interest.) Thc Amend- with pillows, one with a bath towel, and ments of 1984 were intended to prevent another by pressing its face against her against handicapped new- shou~der.~'" borns with life-threatening conditions. It is emphasized that whilc a patholo- The act, however, according to its au- gist cannot present a positive determina- thors, is meant to exclude infants with tion in every instance of child mortality, more than one life-threatening disability, an examination of the child's social his- where there is no effective treatment for tory is essential in questionable cases. It one of the conditions. These infants could is also suggested that the term "undctcr- be classified as "futile."42 mined," rather than SIDS, should be re- In his award-winning essay on ethical corded as the causc of death on the death issues in infanticide, David ~ister~hp- plied ~lu~e's~~definition of personhood: "A natural person is any biologic entity of *At press time, the had been convictcd of four counts of second degree murder and onc count of first the species Homo sqiens that possesses dcgrcc murder. She is prescntly awaiting sentencing thc present functional capability for con- (personal communication with Robert Sinipson, District Attorney, Owcga County, NY). scious awareness, or any human being

382 Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 Neonaticide, Infanticide, and Filicide whose cerebrum is structurally suffi- sible for the termination of such patients ciently like that of a normal adult human simply because they lack the functional being that, if it were fully operational capacity for conscious awareness?" without ~tructuralchange, it would evince Harms and Giordano's argument is neurologic activity of the same nature as philosophical, and a definitive answer is that of a normal adult human being." unlikely to be reached. The controversy Using Kluge's definition, it is possible of terminal decisionmaking then returns that a defective newborn could (based to the question of parental authority. If upon the severity of its condition) be con- society is unable to create all-inclusive sidered either a person or . Fol- guidelines, then who holds the ultimate lowing this rationale, it is further possible authority for each individual case? Orga- that treatment could ethically bc withheld nizations such as the American Medical from those newborns considered to be Association and the American Academy . lover^^ supports this view- of Pediatrics have affirmed the rights of point: "Where the handicap is sufficiently parents to be responsible for life decisions serious, the killing of a baby may benefit regarding their children. These groups do the family to an extent that is sufficient to qualify their position with statements re- outweigh the unpleasantness of the kill- garding bencfice~~e.~"If a parent fails to ing.'' ~ister~?goes further to say that us- proceed in a manner that reflects the ing scarce resources to prolong the lives child's best interest, then the state may of nonpersons would be unethical as it exercise paternalistic power to override would deprive persons of these resources. the parent's decision.47 It does not necessarily follow, however, Ethical matters involving life and death that all those disabled newborns are constantly subject to emotional con- under the label of person should receive troversy. It is certain that with today's treatment. What if the infant is facing a rapidly advancing technology, the dispo- life of and suffering and has scant sition of severely handicapped newborns hope of interaction with people? ~ister" will continue to be a source of heated feels that society as a whole is responsible debate. for determining the qualitative parameters to be used in determining whether the Disposition of Offenders expected quality of an infant's life will be Specific trends have become apparent worth the expenditure of extraordinary in the and sentencing patterns measures to save it. of filicidal offenders. The disposition of Harms and ~iordano*point out that documented offenders who have commit- Lister's conclusion could be expanded to ted child murder has resulted in a dispro- include individuals, both infants and portionate gender-biased sentencing phe- adults, who have suffered severe injury or nomenon. Paternal offenders are sent to illness resulting in the cessation or a de- prison or executed more often than ma- crease of cortical functioning. They ask ternal offenders. Mothers who commit the question, "Should society be respon- neonaticide are less likely to be hospital-

Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 383 Pitt and Bale ized than those who commit filicide. The that explored ethological theories and the low hospitalization rate for neonaticide killing of a newborn by a parent. corresponds to the lower incidence of Child murder seems to be a multifac- psychoses in that group.' Often are eted phenomenon that deserves a high unwilling to convict a woman for neonati- level of professional attention to further cide; for no other crime is there such a identify risk." In the documented clinical lack of con~iction.~'it has been specu- case histories of mothers who commit lated that this trend is due to the failure of neonaticide, medical confirmation of the accused to fit the societal pregnancy is routinely absent. This em- of a m~rderess.~'Another plausible cause phasizes the critical need of physicians to for the low conviction rate is that society diagnose pregnancy in unmarried mothers believes that a woman who has killed her and to explore the impact of that pregnan- child has constructed enough guilt in the c~.~~Resnick found that three-quarters of act to punish her ~ufficiently.~~ the parents who killed their children evi- ~esnick'"ound that the likelihood of a denced psychiatric symptoms before the mother killing a second newborn after act. Forty percent of these parents were standing trial for neonaticide is very low. seen by a physician shortly before com- Although a few reports of recidivism ex- mitting their crimes.' Once again, it is ist, generally the previous neonaticides in imperative that medical professionals, these instances had been undiscovered. particularly psychiatrists and obstetri- cians, be alert to the filicidal potential of their patients. Conclusion The possibility of child homicide This article provides an overview of should never be overlooked, particularly several topics related to the murder of in mothers who are depressed or unpre- children. Our intent was to furnish the pared for postnatal child care. Warning reader with an understanding of the wide signs include mothers displaying suicidal spectrum of factors that contribute to the ideation, strong parental identification murder of a child by a parent. Given the with an "overloved" child, and evidence scope of our project, each of the subhead- of hostility toward the favorite child of a ings addressed offers the potential to gen- spouse.' Hospitalization is mandatory erate prolific, subject-specific research when parents express concern over harm- and/or articles. Moreover, our discussion ing their children and are overconcerned was limited to the incidence of child mur- about their children's health.' Resnick der in the human race. Several articles suggests directly questioning the parents were identified that focused on regarding the fate of their children.' This behavior. However, we determined that approach may be helpful in assessing the the inclusion of such research did not fit extent of the parent-child bond. within the objective of our article. Rather, Some authors suggest prevention pro- it is our opinion that this subject would be grams designed to focus on the develop- best addressed in the context of an article mentally based vulnerabilities of newborn

384 Bull Am Acad Psychiatry Law, Vol. 23, No. 3, 1995 Neonaticide, Infanticide, and Filicide children.") parents must be thoroughly cide: an anthropological inquiry. Indian J Soc Work XLV:297-302, 1984 educated about the extreme stress of the Light S: Female infanticide in China: response infancy period. Continuing education is to the victimization of women and children. J also necessary to aid parents in coping Center Women & Policy Stud 8:s-6. 1985 Mosher S: Why are baby girls being killed in with the persistent demands of the postin- China? Wall Street Journal, July 25, 1984 fancy period. Currently, and Funayama M, Sagisaka K: Consecutive infan- ticides in Japan. Am J Forensic Med Pathol social service approaches are not meeting 0:9-11, 1988 society's needs to prevent filicide and Scheper-I-lughes N: Culture, scarcity and ma- infanti~ide.~'Hence, a continued effort to ternal thinking. Ethos 13:291-317. 1985 Rcsnick PJ: Child murder by parents: a psy- ascertain and determine the etiological chiatric review of filicide. Am J Psychiatry factors responsible for neonaticide, infm- 126(3):325-34, 1969 Oates W, O'Neill E Jr (eds.): "Mcdea" by ticide, and filicide would provide an in- , in The Con~pleteGreek Drama (vol valuable database to assist in the preven- 1). New York: Random House, 1938, pp tion of subsequent offenses. 719-58 Scott P: Parents who kill their children. Med Sci Law 13:120-6, 1973 Acknowledgment d'Orban PT: Women who kill their children. Br J Psychiatry 134:560-71, 1979 The authors express their heartfelt thanks to Dr. Bourget D, Bradford JM: Homicidal parents. Jonas R. Rappeport for reviewing earlier drafts of Can J Psychiatry 35:233-8, 1990 this article and for his editorial assistance. Resnick PJ: Murder of the newborn: a psychi- atric review of neonaticidc. Am J Psychiatry 126:3414-20, 1970 References Hirschmann VJ, Schmitz E: Structural analy- sis of female infanticide. Psychotherapy 8:l- Rcsnick PJ: Infanticide, in Modern Perspec- 20, 1958 tives in Psycho-obstetrics. Edited by Howclls Gummersbach K: Die kriminalpsycholo- JG. Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1972, pp gische Personlichkiet der Kindes modcrnnen 410-31 und ihre Wcrtung im gerichtsmedizinischen Harms DL. Giordano J: Ethical issues in high- Gutachten. Wein Med Wschr 88:1151, 1938 risk infant care. Issues Compr Pediatr Nurs Brozovsky M, Falit lH: Neonaticide: clinical 13:1-14. 1990 and psychoclynamic considerations. J Am Bloch H: Abandonment, infanticide, and fili- Acad Child Psychiatry 10:673-83. 1971 cidc. Am J Dis Child 142:1058-60, 1988 Gerchow J: Die arztlich-forensische Beurtei- Kaku K: Were girl babies sacrificed to a folk lung von Kindesmorderinnen. Halle, Germa- superstition in 1966 in Japan? Ann Hum Biol ny: Carl Morhold Vcrlag. 1957 2391-3, 1975 Campion JF, Cravens JM, Covan F: A study Hopwood JS: Child murder and insanity. J of filicidal men. Am J Psychiatry 145: Ment Sci 73:95-108, 1927 1141-4. 1988 Fuchs R: Abandoned Children: Foundlings Spinetta J. Rigler D: The child abusing parent. and Child Welfare in Nineleenlh-Century Psychol Bull 77:296-304, 1972 France. Albany, NY: State University of New Stccle B: Psychodynamic factors in child York. 1984 abuse. in The Battered Child (cd 3). Edited by Ilrdy SB: Fitness tradeoffs in the history and Kcmpe CH, Helfer RE. : University of delegated mothering with special of Chicago Press, 1980, pp 49-85 reference to wet-nursing, ahandonnient, and Kaplan S, Pelcovitz D, Snlzinger S: Psycho- infanticide. Ethol & Sociobiol 13:40%42, pathology of parents of abused and ncglectcd 19O2 children and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Loomis MJ: Maternal filicide: a prelin1in;rry Psychoanal 22:238-44, 1983 examination of culture and victim sex. Int J Jason J, Gilliland JC, Tyler CW Jr: IIomiciJe Law Psychiatry 9:503-6, I986 as a cause of pediatric mortality in the United Krishnaswamy S: A note on female infanti- States. Pediatrics 72: 191-7, 1983

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