Woman tells police of killing five children
2001-06-22 19:54
Houston - The mother who allegedly drowned her five children one by one in a
bathtub told police the oldest one tried to escape but she chased
him through the house, a newspaper reported.
In the videotaped interview with police, Andrea Yates described how
she methodically killed the children on Wednesday, the Houston
Chronicle said in its Friday editions. It quoted an unidentified
police investigator as saying she spoke in a "zombie-like fashion."
Yates, a former nurse, told police that 2-year-old Luke was the
first child to be drowned, followed by Paul, 3, and John, 5. After
each child died, Yates carried their bodies into a bedroom, put
them on a bed and covered them with a sheet.
She said 7-year-old Noah walked into the bathroom and saw her
holding the youngest child, 6-month-old Mary.
"What's wrong with Mary?" Noah asked his mother, according to the
account.
Yates told police she chased Noah through the house, dragged him
back to the bathroom and drowned him next to Mary, the investigator
told the newspaper.
Noah's body was found in the bathtub, the others in a bedroom.
The 36-year-old mother was charged Wednesday with one count of
capital murder, but that could change after more investigation,
Assistant District Attorney Joe Owmby said Friday. No decision has
been made about whether to seek the death penalty, he said.
"It is possible that we could prosecute just that case or charge
other cases or charge different cases," he said.
Yates appeared briefly in court Friday, her arms folded and wearing
an orange jumpsuit, and said she could not afford a lawyer. State
District Judge Belinda Hill told her an attorney would be appointed
for her.
"This is the most horrendous thing that I have ever seen," said
Owmby, a 15-year prosecutor who said he has handled a dozen capital
murder cases.
"I mean, we have five children at the morgue," he told CNN.
Preliminary results from autopsies conducted on Thursday indicate the
children drowned, Harris County Medical Examiner Dr. Joye Carter
said.
A motion for a gag order was filed. The judge said she would rule
on it later.
On Thursday, Ms. Yates' husband, Russell Yates, clutched a family
portrait as he talked about how postpartum depression had gripped
his wife after the birth of their fourth child and again after Mary
was born. He is a computer specialist at the US National
Aeronautics and Space Administration.
"She loved these kids," he said, recalling how on Valentine's Day
she gave her children handmade heart-shaped booklets filled with
coupons for hugs or favorite games.
He said he and Noah had posted a list of techniques to help her
deal with her stress inside the family's suburban home near
Houston.
"Everyone who knows her knew she loved the kids. She is a kind,
gentle person. What you see here and what you saw yesterday, it's
not her," he said.
He said his wife didn't show signs of depression until Luke was
born. She attempted suicide, but eventually was put on medication
and made what he thought was a full recovery, he said.
"She was fine from that time until a few months after she had our
fifth child," he said. "Her dad passed away about three months
after we had our baby girl and that just sent her spiraling down."
Ann Dunnewold, a Dallas psychologist, said postpartum depression
may evolve into postpartum psychosis if something dramatic occurs,
such as marital problems or a death in the family.
Postpartum psychosis, the most severe form of postpartum
depression, affects mothers after one or two of every 1 000 births,
said Laurence Kruckman, a professor of medical anthropology at
Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
"If you are in that category, there is a high likelihood of
hallucinations," said Kruckman, who heads Postpartum Support
International. "Mothers hear voices that say kill yourself or kill
the baby, or both."
- AP