From Mother to Murderess

Children being murdered by their mothers is not only on the rise but mothers (acting alone) are the #1 killer of their children says a report issued by the “Statista Research Department.”

Find more statistics at Statista

Just a few years (ago according to a 2017 report by Doug Criss of CNN) an average of 500 children were murdered a year by their parents with men leading at 57.4%

Source: A parent killing a child happens more often than we think

The reasons for Mothers being in the lead for familicide is arguable, more single mothers than ever before, mental health issues on the rise due to mainstream media ratcheting up political drama and social tension, increase in alcohol and drug addiction. Whatever the cause the effect is very real. Is it reversable?

Recent Mother Murderers

Sept 13, 2022

Erin Merdy, 30:  Mother of three decided she wanted to be the mother of none. She drowned her children and police found them on a Coney Island beach. She was deemed by the court as “not mentally fit to stand trial.” Once she is found to be mentally fit, off to trial she will go.

Source: 3 children found on Coney Island beach drowned, deaths ruled homicides: Medical examiner

Feb 26, 2019

Shana Decree, 45, and her daughter, Dominique Decree, 19: Where charged with going on a homicidal rampage and killing five family members.

According to court documents. “Shana advised that all, including the children, were talking about suicide.”

Shana Decree allegedly “told police that everyone at the apartment, including the nine-year-olds and the thirteen-year-old, wanted to die,”

Source: Man whose estranged wife, daughter allegedly killed son in murder spree wants them in jail for life

July 28, 2022

Sonia Loja, 36: Connecticut resident, ran an illegal daycare in her home. One morning she called the parents of the children she normally took care of and told them not to drop off their children. While her husband was at work she strangled her kids and hung herself in the shed.

Source: Connecticut mom Sonia Loga killed her 3 kids before taking own life

August 7, 2022

Janee Pedesclaux, 31: Louisiana resident slit the throats of her two young children. After the attack she made several video calls to her children’s father then posted a video to Instagram where she was covered in her children’s blood and saying,

“I’m done. My children are dead. I’m done. I’m done with life, Its all Jermaine’s fault. I’m going to kill myself.”

She didn’t kill herself, she was charged with murder and awaits trial. Her son survived but is in critical condition.

Source: ‘My children are dead’ – mother arrested after daughter killed, son critical

July 6, 2022

Molly Cheng 23: A Minnesota wife and her husband were fighting on the forth-of-July holiday weekend, he committed suicide. She drowned her three kids and herself in Vadnais Lake.

Source: Hours after husband’s death, Minnesota mother drowns 3 children, kills self, police say

August 13, 2022

Eliara Paz Nardes, 31: A Brazilin single mother living in the town of Parana, killed her three young children by suffocating them. She said she was tired and couldn’t afford to take care of them alone. According to the medical examiner the two boys were killed seven days before the daughter, meaning the daughter was forced to live with the bodies while the mother continued to go to work. Now she is in prison awaiting trial.

Source: ‘Tired and lonely’ single mom kills children, 3 and 9, and lives with their bodies for 14 days

Oct. 26, 2020

Amber Langley, 38: The murdered body of a 14 year old autistic girl is found off the side of a road, killed execution style (shotgun to the back of the head) in Stafford Arizona. The mother continued to collect government benefits for two years while the murdered girl was missing. Detectives used DNA testing to determine the missing girl was hers. When police contacted the mother she claimed her daughter was still with her. Amber Langley collected $4,500 in false benefits and is being prosecuted because of it, murder charges surely forthcoming. I don’t think her murder trial will go any better for her than her fraud trial.

Source: Mother of child murdered in 2020 Safford cold case arrested

August 29, 2022

Launice Battle, 29: Was charged with murder when her two girls ages two and three died from being left in a hot car in Raleigh NC. Her family says she was a good mother and it must have been a mistake. Her children are dead and she awaits trial for their murder, that makes her a bad mother in my book.

Source: NC mother charged with murder after children die in hot car, police say

September 12, 2022

Alexandria Weinrich, 30: In Pensacola Florida, this mother who is bipolar and had Tourette syndrome, forced her child to overdose on the medication she uses to treat it.

Mother and daughter were rushed by a roommate to the hospital who contacted social services.

The mother took an overdose of the medications “Abilify and Clonidine”

According the child Alexandria overdosed and forced her to take the medication “so they could die and see Jesus.”

This story has a happy ending. The child survived and Alexandria remains in custody on a $150,000 bond.

Source: Escambia County woman attempts intentional overdose on child

What Drives Mothers to Kill?

After having researched these cases and written this article two commonalities scream out to me. Most of the mothers were highly involved in social media. All of the mothers were single mothers with failed relationships with the fathers.

From experience I can tell you social media takes your focus off things that are important and causes you to envy the superficial. Everyone is doing better than you it also steals time away from your family. Sometimes I feel like a Facebook widower. According to CNBC a recent Facebook internal study states that social media makes people depressed.

Could depression have caused the mothers to kill their children, driven by the rise of social media since the pandemic lockdowns or was it the missing fathers which drove them over the brink? I would like to hear your opinion. What do you think the reasons for the explosion in the numbers of mothers murdering their children is?