‘Just Say Goodbye’ (January 2013 online edition)

Recommendations

Info

DVRCV Discussion Paper No. 8the boys. 119 During counselling sessions she had developed the view that he wasa selfish person and a bad father who would never change. 120In discussions about separating in the days before the filicide, David said toDonna that, in the circumstances, it would have been better if they had neverhad the boys. 121 He suggested that rather than she move out, he would moveout and she and the boys could stay in the house. That night, Donna decidedthat she could not go on with life as a single parent and therefore would commitsuicide. 122 She also decided that she would rather kill the boys than leave thembehind with their father. 123In a suicide note to her psychologist, she indicated that she believed the boyswould be ‘better off dead’ than living without their mother: ‘they would not beable to get over it and it would be too cruel to them’. 124 She also wrote:Sadly I am too broken to go on. Today the boys will be given an overdose as Icannot and wouldn’t ever abandon them. If I had real support from somewherefrom someone who really cared it may have been different … Thomas andMatthew have had a wonderful childhood to date and I won’t let anyone hurtthem ever … I’m not a coward nor am I crazy. I see this as my greatest act oflove … I know I was beyond help … now want peace forever. 125Donna also wrote a suicide note to her husband in which she said:I’m so so sorry for your pain upon the discovery of what I’ve done. I didn’t doit because I’m angry with you. I forgive you for whatever hurt you caused me.You can’t help it. I just couldn’t abandon our beautiful boys. I’ve been dead fora few days and I just wanted peace … I pray I do not live through this …I hope you find the strength to go on without us. 126Evidence provided at Donna Fitchett’s trials showed that she was depressedat the time of the filicide and had a history of depression, including postnataldepression following the births of both her children and a period of takingantidepressants from 2002 to 2004. 127 She had been seeing a psychologist forover a year before killing the children. Her sister, who saw her on the day before119 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 5).120 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 6).121 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 9).122 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 6).123 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 10).124 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 10).125 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 14).126 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 18).127 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258, R v Fitchett [2010] VSC 393. Evidence also showed that Donna Fitchettsuffered from Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and menopausal hormonal imbalances for which she received medication(R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258).74
‘Just Say Goodbye’the incident, said she was irrational, distraught and crying, and saying that hermarriage was over. She made a number of ‘bizarre’ and ‘irrational’ statements. 128Professor Mullen, Emeritus Professor of Forensic Psychiatry at MonashUniversity, and Dr Sullivan, Assistant Clinical Director at the Victorian Instituteof Forensic Mental Health, who both undertook a psychiatric examinationof Donna Fitchett, gave evidence at her trials that she was suffering a majordepressive illness when she killed her children and she could not reason that herconduct was wrong. Justice Curtain outlined Professor Mullen’s description ofDonna Fitchett’s case as one of extended suicide, ‘where a mother with a closerelationship to her children decides that for her to die the children must die aswell because she cannot conceive either of leaving them or of the children beingable to survive without her’. 129However, Dr Yvonne Skinner, a consultant psychiatrist in private practicein Sydney, gave converse evidence. Dr Skinner was not able to undertake apsychiatric examination of Donna Fitchett. Relying on transcripts of the trial,statements and medical reports, she could see no evidence that Donna wassuffering from anything more than mild depression before the killings. 130 Atthe first trial, Dr Skinner also gave evidence that what Donna said in her lettersto her counsellor and husband suggested the killings were motivated by spousalrevenge. 131Justice Nettle, in sentencing Donna Fitchett at her first trial, said that it waspossible that she killed the children because she was upset that when she toldher husband she was going to leave him, her son Thomas said he wanted to staywith his father. Justice Nettle also pointed to a ‘further possibility’ that DonnaFitchett wanted to punish her husband for saying it would be better if she hadnot had children or for ‘not being the sort of husband and father she thoughthe should have been’. 132Justice Curtain, in sentencing Donna Fitchett at her second trial, said thathe accepted that her mild to moderate depression was causally linked to heractions but that did not operate to reduce her moral culpability for the crimesto a significant degree. Justice Curtain said that in the second trial ‘no evidencewas led as to the motive being spousal revenge … the only possible motiveput forward was that you wanted to take your children into death with you,otherwise these are motiveless crimes’. 133128 According to her sister, on the day before the killing Donna Fitchett was ‘a shattered mess’ and quotedconspiracy theories such as the Howard Government put Martin Bryant up to the Port Arthur killings anda BHP employee murdered former prime minister Harold Holt (Gregory 2008).129 R v Fitchett [2010] VSC 393 (para 13).130 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 27).131 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 27).It is not clear from the sentencing documents why this evidence was notgiven at the second trial.132 R v Fitchett [2008] VSC 258 (para 10).133 R v Fitchett [2010] VSC 393 (para 27).75
Page 1 and 2:
‘Just Say Goodbye’Parents who k
Page 3 and 4:
‘Just Say Goodbye’Parents who k
Page 5 and 6:
CASE STUDY Gary Bell 49CASE STUDY P
Page 7 and 8:
Chapter 1IntroductionIn January 200
Page 9 and 10:
‘Just Say Goodbye’are also kill
Page 11 and 12:
‘Just Say Goodbye’Outline of th
Page 13 and 14:
‘Just Say Goodbye’• 6 per cen
Page 15 and 16:
‘Just Say Goodbye’Separation: A
Page 17 and 18:
‘Just Say Goodbye’While the foc
Page 19 and 20:
‘Just Say Goodbye’women as the
Page 21 and 22:
‘Just Say Goodbye’Killing intim
Page 23 and 24:
‘Just Say Goodbye’section). Giv
Page 25 and 26: ‘Just Say Goodbye’children are
Page 27 and 28: ‘Just Say Goodbye’perpetrators
Page 29 and 30: ‘Just Say Goodbye’the relations
Page 31 and 32: ‘Just Say Goodbye’male and fema
Page 33 and 34: ‘Just Say Goodbye’studies show
Page 35 and 36: ‘Just Say Goodbye’parents’ se
Page 37 and 38: ‘Just Say Goodbye’fathers that
Page 39 and 40: Chapter 4‘Suffer for the rest of
Page 41 and 42: ‘Just Say Goodbye’with him whil
Page 43 and 44: ‘Just Say Goodbye’domineering,
Page 45 and 46: ‘Just Say Goodbye’the media in
Page 47 and 48: ‘Just Say Goodbye’According to
Page 49 and 50: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Sonia: The fi
Page 51 and 52: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Gary BellIn J
Page 53 and 54: ‘Just Say Goodbye’In the follow
Page 55 and 56: ‘Just Say Goodbye’‘Kill them
Page 57 and 58: ‘Just Say Goodbye’described him
Page 59 and 60: ‘Just Say Goodbye’It appears th
Page 61 and 62: ‘Just Say Goodbye’the time they
Page 63 and 64: ‘Just Say Goodbye’to do so by h
Page 65 and 66: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Conclusion: T
Page 67 and 68: ‘Just Say Goodbye’that fits the
Page 69 and 70: ‘Just Say Goodbye’the event, he
Page 71 and 72: ‘Just Say Goodbye’‘Samantha
Page 73 and 74: ‘Just Say Goodbye’her ex-partne
Page 75: ‘Just Say Goodbye’one from Japa
Page 79 and 80: ‘Just Say Goodbye’The patterns
Page 81 and 82: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Recognising t
Page 83 and 84: ‘Just Say Goodbye’In contrast t
Page 85 and 86: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Legal respons
Page 87 and 88: ‘Just Say Goodbye’It is importa
Page 89 and 90: ‘Just Say Goodbye’The VSRFVD ha
Page 91 and 92: ‘Just Say Goodbye’about what pr
Page 93 and 94: ‘Just Say Goodbye’Summary of ke
Page 95 and 96: APPENDICESTable A3: Gender and age
Page 97 and 98: Appendix 2Referral informationNatio
Page 99 and 100: REFERENCESBagshaw, D, Brown, T, Wen
Page 101 and 102: REFERENCESFish, E, McKenzie, M and
Page 103 and 104: REFERENCESMeyer, C and Oberman, M (
Page 105: REFERENCESVictorian Child Death Rev
show all

‘Just Say Goodbye’ (January 2013 online edition)

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?