#3. Ms. Wilkerson had been the driver in a car accident in which the driver of the other car in the collision died. In other cases like this, unless there is alcohol involved, it is assumed that it was as it is referred to: an accident. It is also usually assumed that the driver will be punished for years simply through their feelings of guilt, whether or not they were at fault.
#4 Ms. Wilkerson was pregnant with a fourth child in a marriage that her children reported had been a source of conflict for some time.
Put all of these factors together and say that you would not have felt overwhelmed and been vulnerable to depression. Many news reports have portrayed the unfortunate event as simply an intended act of evil. Putting a demonic spin on this story only illustrates further the key features of racism and sexism: the idea that others (other ethnic groups, other gender, etc.) don’t hurt, care, feel pain or deserve the rewards, regards and protection that another group does.
In cases where children have committed violent acts against adults, the key questions that are asked are: 1)Was there a history of abuse or neglect; 2) Was the child suffering from depression or another mental health problem; or 3) Did the child feel they had an alternative place to go to get away from their tormentor?
For many women, their violent and abusive husbands put them into the same fragile position as dependent children. Mental health providers would argue that the effect of hormonal shifts on the brain in someone who already had suffered trauma along with severe stressors would render them less capable of appropriate decision making than many children.