#367: Girl With Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) Kills Her "Abuser"
The Rotten Mango podcast explores a tragic case involving Sarah, a young woman diagnosed with dissociative identity disorder (DID) after enduring years of severe abuse in her childhood. The episode delves into Sarah's traumatic past, examining how her harrowing experiences potentially contributed to the development of her DID, a condition characterized by distinct personas or "alters" that serve protective roles.
The central focus lies on the debate surrounding Sarah's guilt and victimhood in the killing of her alleged abuser, Harold. The episode explores the complexities of the case, including the prosecution's arguments against Sarah and advocates who contend she acted in self-defense, having suffered repeated exploitation and psychological manipulation. It also touches on efforts for clemency based on Sarah's apparent remorse and rehabilitation.
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1-Page Summary
Sarah's Traumatic Childhood and History of Abuse
From a young age, Sarah endured severe neglect and multiple forms of abuse, as recounted by Dr. Mike Lloyd. With her distracted mother dismissing her pleas after being assaulted, Sarah lacked stable parental support. She suffered sexual assault from neighbors like "Doc" and Harold, who continued the pattern despite Sarah's objections. Though her parents noticed signs like bruises, they failed to seek proper therapy for Sarah's extensive trauma.
Sarah's Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID)
Sarah's psychological evaluation revealed dissociative identity disorder (DID), a condition characterized by distinct "alters" that serve various protective roles. Alters like Noname hold traumatic memories, while Alyssa emerges to handle situations Vanessa cannot cope with. The alters exhibit different personalities, behaviors, and varying levels of awareness. Psychologist Dr. Hutchinson notes Sarah's DID likely developed as a protective mechanism to dissociate from her childhood trauma.
Debate Around Sarah's Guilt and Victimhood
Prosecutors argue Sarah is a cold-blooded killer who murdered Harold out of curiosity, pointing to her fascination with violence and lack of defensive wounds on Harold. However, advocates contend Harold was an abusive predator who groomed and exploited the traumatized Sarah through repeated sexual assaults, controlling behavior, and degrading acts. A key debate centered on the admissibility of evidence related to Harold's concerning behavior with young women and online activities.
Sarah's Trial and Sentencing
In a controversial decision, the judge excluded key evidence about Harold's alleged predatory conduct from the jury, including testimony about his inappropriate interactions with underage girls and visits to explicit websites. This limited the jury's ability to consider the full context. Though the jury foreman later expressed regret over the lack of options like a self-defense strategy, Sarah received a "hard 50" minimum sentence.
Efforts for Clemency and Reduced Sentence
Despite her DID diagnosis and history of abuse, Sarah received a severe sentence. Advocates have rallied for clemency, arguing she has shown genuine remorse and rehabilitation in prison through programs like training service dogs. They believe her actions post-murder suggest someone trying to start anew, not evade justice. Efforts focus on reducing her sentence or obtaining a pardon by highlighting her growth and potential for positive contributions.
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Actionables
- You can deepen your understanding of trauma and its effects by starting a personal journal to explore your own experiences and reactions to stress. Writing regularly can help you identify patterns in your behavior that may be linked to past events, fostering self-awareness and emotional processing.
- Engage in role-playing exercises with friends to develop empathy for individuals with complex psychological conditions. By acting out scenarios that involve different perspectives, you can cultivate a more nuanced understanding of the challenges faced by those with disorders like DID, which can translate into more compassionate interactions in your daily life.
- Create a book club focused on novels and memoirs dealing with themes of trauma, justice, and recovery. Through discussions and reflections on the characters' experiences, you can gain insights into the societal and personal implications of trauma, as well as the importance of context in understanding actions and behaviors.
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Sarah's traumatic childhood and history of abuse
Sarah's childhood was marked by a lack of parental support and severe forms of abuse. Her experience paints a picture of profound neglect and trauma that went unaddressed by her caregivers.
Sarah's unstable and dysfunctional family background from a young age
Sarah's life was devoid of stable parental figures
From early childhood, Sarah and her sister Ashley experienced significant parental neglect. With an education that consisted primarily of reading classic literature and watching corresponding film adaptations, Sarah was homeschooled, but her learning lacked traditional structure and parental engagement. After being assaulted, she sought comfort from her mother who, distracted on the phone, dismissed her without inquiry and told her to go away. This lack of parental care and attention set the tone for a troubled upbringing.
Exposed to multiple forms of abuse
Tragically, Sarah suffered various types of abuse throughout her formative years. A neighbor, known as Doc, forced her to watch the disturbing act of him killing squirrels and then subjected her to sexual assault. This included oral and digital sexual assault, as well as the horrific use of gardening tools. Another individual, Harold, continued this pattern of abuse by assaulting Sarah and threatening to expel her from the home if she didn't comply. Despite her attempts to reason with him and plead their relationship was akin to father and daughter, he ignored her objections.
In an attempt to cope with the continued abuse, Sarah felt compelled to intoxicate herself to endure Harold's repeated assaults. She described feeling powerless, recounting times when she said no and tried to escape, only to be physically restrained by him. These encounters further destroyed her t ...
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Sarah's traumatic childhood and history of abuse
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Counterarguments
...
Actionables
- You can create a personal safety plan that includes identifying trusted individuals you can reach out to in times of need. This plan should be easily accessible and include phone numbers, addresses, and any other relevant contact information. For example, keep a small card in your wallet or a note on your phone with these details.
- Develop a self-care routine that prioritizes your mental health and well-being. This could involve setting aside time each day for activities that you find calming or restorative, such as reading, taking a walk, or practicing mindfulness meditation. The key is consistency and choosing activities that genuinely resonate with you.
- Engage in educational resources to better understand the dynamics of abuse and neglect. ...
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The development and role of Sarah's dissociative identity disorder (DID)
Sarah's psychological evaluation and the circumstances surrounding her situation reveal a complex system of multiple identities, known as alters, which have evolved as a coping mechanism in response to her traumatic experiences.
Sarah's psychological evaluation reveals the presence of multiple distinct identities or "alters" that make up her DID system
Sarah's psychological assessment indicates she has dissociative identity disorder (DID), characterized by the presence of distinct identity states known as alters. These alters can have contrasting personal histories, self-images, and preferences. Through clinical observation, alters manifest differently in body language, tone, facial expressions, and even separate conscious streams of thought. Alters like Myla and Noname serve different roles, with Noname being a "trauma carrier," holding memories from before middle school. In contrast, Myla acts as a protective mother figure to another alter, Vanessa.
The alters have drastically different personalities, mannerisms, and emotional states
Sarah's psychologist, Dr. Hutchinson, notes the differing mannerisms and personalities of the alters, ranging from being "quiet, soft-spoken, apologetic" to "incredibly assertive, definitive, and unapologetic." Alters can have various likes and dislikes, indicative of their separate existence. Vanessa is perceived as depressed and anxious, while Alyssa is seen as protective and strong. This multiplicity of identities within Sarah's DID system is evidenced by changes in behavior, such as differently describing the crime and presenting varying smoking and drinking habits.
The alters have varying levels of awareness and control, with some having no memory of the others' actions
DID manifests with varying degrees of alter awareness and control. Some alters, like Alyssa, may emerge to take control in situations where others, such as Vanessa, cannot cope. It's not uncommon for individuals with DID to have alters with no recollection of what the others have done, leading to disjointed memory and frequent episodes of amnesia.
The DID diagnosis is argued to have developed as a coping mechanism against Sarah's traumatic childhood experiences
Sarah's DID has been described as a protective mechanism developed in her brain to dissociate from her traumatic childhood experiences. Different alters fulfill specific roles to manage this trauma, like additional "glasses" to hold more trauma.
The creation of separate identities allowed Sarah to psychologically dissociate from her trauma
Psychologist Dr. Mike Lloyd likens an individual's resilience to trauma as a glass cup, with children having a smaller capacity. Sarah's creation of alters seems to be a result of this "overflow" of unresolved trauma, where new identities contain and manage these experiences.
Different alters emerged to fulfill specific protective or functional roles within Sarah's system
Alters in Sarah's system serve varied roles. For instance, Noname holds traumatic memories, while Alyssa takes on a protective function, emerging specifically to cope with situations that Vanessa, the more ...
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The development and role of Sarah's dissociative identity disorder (DID)
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- The diagnosis of DID is controversial, with some experts questioning the validity of the disorder due to its complex nature and the potential for suggestibility during therapy.
- The distinct personalities and behaviors of alters could be interpreted by skeptics as role-playing or a form of attention-seeking behavior rather than genuine dissociative states.
- The variability in awareness and control among alters could be seen as inconsistent with how memory and consciousness typically operate, leading some to question the authenticity of these experiences.
- The argument that DID develops as a coping mechanism is based on a theoretical model of dissociation that not all psychologists or psychiatrists may agree with.
- The creation of separate identities as a dissociative response to trauma could be challenged by those who believe that such responses are not necessarily indicative of a fragmented identity but rather a spectrum of normal psychological coping mechanisms.
- The emergence of specific alters to fulfill roles could be seen as an oversimplification of complex psychological processes and may not account for the dynamic nature of personality and behavior.
- The assertion that it is difficult to fake DID could be countered by pointing out that there have been documented cases of feigned DID, which complicates the diagnostic process.
- The concept of alters having "permeable and impe ...
Actionables
- You can deepen empathy by writing fictional diary entries from different perspectives to understand varying emotional states and personalities. Imagine you're a writer creating characters for a novel, each with their own backstory and traits. Write diary entries for these characters, exploring how they might react to the same event differently. This exercise can help you appreciate the complexity of individual experiences and the concept of multiple perspectives within a single narrative.
- Enhance your emotional intelligence by practicing active listening during conversations, focusing on recognizing and acknowledging the different emotional states of the people you interact with. Pay close attention to their body language, tone, and choice of words. Afterward, reflect on how their emotions and mannerisms may have shifted throughout the conversation, which can help you understand the fluidity of emotional states similar to the alters described.
- Develop a nuanced understanding of psychological d ...
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Arguments around Sarah's guilt vs. victimhood, and whether Harold was also a perpetrator
A complex legal and moral debate surrounds the case of Sarah, with prosecutors arguing her guilt while advocates for Sarah present her as a victim of Harold's predatory behavior.
Prosecutors argue that Sarah is simply a cold-blooded killer who murdered Harold out of curiosity
Prosecutors contend that Sarah is a cold-blooded killer who meticulously planned and executed the murder of Harold. They point to Sarah's fascination with violence, her comments about understanding serial killers like Jeffrey Dahmer, and her admission to hallucinating and killing faceless men as indicators of her murderous curiosity. The argument is bolstered by the lack of defensive wounds on Harold, suggesting a lack of prolonged struggle, and the thorough planning that went into the murder, including research on methods of killing. Prosecutors further argue that her diagnosis of Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) was fabricated after the arrest to shirk responsibility for her actions.
Advocates for Sarah argue that Harold was an abusive predator who groomed and exploited the traumatized Sarah
Advocates for Sarah contend that Harold was an abusive predator who exploited a vulnerable and traumatized Sarah, grooming her for his sexual gratification. They state Harold repeatedly sexually assaulted her, controlled her life in abusive ways including financial domination, and degraded her self-esteem. Harold also manipulated her into undergoing unwanted cosmetic surgeries, created debts to keep her financially enslaved, and is said to have assaulted her multiple times a week. Moreover, Harold's inappropriate behavior with young women and possession of explicit content suggests a pattern of predatory behavior.
There is debate over the admissibility of evidence related to Harold's concerning behavior and online activi ...
Here’s what you’ll find in our full summary
Arguments around Sarah's guilt vs. victimhood, and whether Harold was also a perpetrator
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- Prosecutors may be overemphasizing Sarah's fascination with violence without sufficient context or understanding of her mental state.
- The lack of defensive wounds on Harold does not conclusively prove a lack of struggle or premeditation; it could also indicate surprise or incapacitation.
- The thorough planning argued by prosecutors could be interpreted differently, such as evidence of a mental disorder affecting Sarah's judgment.
- The claim that Sarah fabricated her DID diagnosis after the arrest could be challenged by medical experts who might confirm the authenticity of her condition.
- Advocates for Sarah may be relying too heavily on Harold's alleged behavior without direct evidence linking it to Sarah's actions.
- The argument that Harold's behavior justifies Sarah's actions as self-defense could be seen as an oversimplification of the legal definiti ...
Actionables
- You can enhance your critical thinking by role-playing a mock trial based on a high-profile case, where you and your friends take on the roles of prosecution, defense, and jury to debate the evidence and reach a verdict. This activity will help you understand the complexities of legal arguments and the importance of evidence in determining guilt or innocence. For example, assign roles, summarize the case facts, and then argue your assigned position, encouraging everyone to question biases and the reliability of evidence.
- Develop empathy and understanding of trauma by volunteering at a local shelter or hotline, where you can interact with individuals who have experienced abuse or trauma. This direct engagement will give you a deeper insight into the challenges faced by survivors and the impact of trauma on their lives. For instance, by listening to and supporting survivors, you'll learn about the real-world implications of abuse and the importance of considering someone's background when assessing their actions.
- Improve your media literacy by creating a personal blog or jo ...
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The trial process and controversial decisions about admissible evidence
During the trial, discussions arose regarding evidence about the defendant's character, which led to contentious decisions about what the jury could consider.
The judge made the controversial decision to exclude key evidence about Harold's alleged predatory behavior
In a controversial ruling, the judge declared that certain aspects of Harold's conduct would not be presented in front of the jury. This exclusion meant that testimony about Harold's inappropriate interactions with other young women was not admitted. Additionally, the jury did not hear evidence related to Harold's internet activities, which included visits to websites hosting explicit and potentially illegal videos.
Specifically, testimony from a single mother about Harold grooming her underage twin daughters by giving them weed, planning to buy them a car, and purchasing them $400 speakers without the mother's knowledge was barred from being discussed in court. Moreover, a data dump from Harold's phones revealed he frequented sites displaying not only child and teen content but also videos depicting bestiality and men being intimate with women who seemed to be sleeping. None of this information was permissible during the trial.
The jury was limited in their ability to fully consider the context and background of the case
The exclusion of evidence about Harold's past behavior had ...
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The trial process and controversial decisions about admissible evidence
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Counterarguments
- The judge's decision to exclude evidence may have been based on legal principles designed to ensure a fair trial, such as relevance, prejudice, or the risk of confusing the jury.
- Excluding evidence of Harold's character and internet activities could be seen as an effort to prevent the jury from being biased by information that is not directly related to the charges at hand.
- The legal system often requires that evidence must be directly related to the case to be admissible, and the judge may have ruled the excluded evidence as too tangential or prejudicial.
- The binary choice of "insane" or "guilty" might reflect the specific charges and legal definitions that the jury was instructed to consider, rather than a limitation imposed by the exclusion of evidence.
- The frustration of the jury foreman over the lack of options could indicate a need for more comprehensive jury instructions or a misunderstanding of the legal standards required for a verdict.
- The defense attorney's decision not to present a self-defense strategy could have been a strategic choice based on their assessment of the strongest legal defense.
- The legal system's adversarial nature relies on both parties to pr ...
Actionables
- You can enhance your critical thinking by practicing analyzing different outcomes of real-life scenarios. Start by reading a news article or a case study and write down alternative endings based on varying pieces of evidence. This exercise will help you understand the impact of evidence on decision-making and improve your ability to think critically about information presented to you.
- Develop a habit of exploring all sides of a story to better understand complex situations. Whenever you encounter a story, whether in the media or in personal interactions, take time to research or think about the background and context that might not be immediately apparent. This will train you to look beyond the surface and consider the nuances that influence outcomes.
- Engage in role-playing exercises to appreciate the importance of perspective ...
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Sarah's life in prison and efforts by advocates to get her sentence reduced or pardoned
Sarah's case has garnered attention due to the severity of her sentence for murder and the complexities surrounding her mental health and history of abuse. Advocates are now rallying for her clemency.
Despite her DID diagnosis and history of abuse, Sarah was sentenced to a minimum of 50 years in prison
The jury foreman later expressed regret that they were not given more sentencing options, like a self-defense angle
Sarah received a "hard 50" sentence, meaning she has to serve at least 50 years before being eligible for parole. Details emerged that the jury foreman regretted they were not presented with a wider range of sentencing alternatives, such as considering a self-defense argument, given Sarah's history of abuse and mental health conditions. Her attorney was not allowed to depict Mr. Sasko as a sexual predator during the trial, which could have provided crucial context to the case. Additionally, although her legal team appealed the sentence and she was offered a deal to potentially reduce parole to 25 years, there is no guarantee she will obtain parole, especially since it was a violent first-degree murder case.
Advocates have rallied to try to get Sarah's sentence or pardoned through appeals and clemency efforts
They argue that Sarah has shown genuine remorse and rehabilitation while incarcerated
Advocates strive to shed light on the full context of Sarah's case, highlighting her diagnosis of dissociative identity disorder (DID), major depression, and PTSD. Since her incarceration, Sarah has dedicated herself to self-improvement daily and has shown a desire to help young girls who feel as hopeless as she once did. For instance, she has participated in programs like training service dogs for those with physical or visual impairments. Sarah's remorse for her crime and her reflection on the trauma of her past are taken by her supporters as evidence of her rehabilitation.
Sarah has expressed that if she could speak to the governor, she'd communicate that she is not the same person she was when she committed her crime.
Efforts are underway to reduce Sarah’s sentence or to get her pardoned. Advocates argue that her actions post-murder, such as givin ...
Here’s what you’ll find in our full summary
Sarah's life in prison and efforts by advocates to get her sentence reduced or pardoned
Additional Materials
Counterarguments
- The severity of Sarah's sentence may reflect the legal system's stance on the gravity of the crime committed, regardless of personal history or mental health issues.
- The jury's regret over sentencing options does not necessarily imply that a different sentence would have been more just or appropriate under the law.
- Clemency is an extraordinary measure and not all cases may meet the high threshold for such relief.
- Genuine remorse and rehabilitation, while important, may not always be sufficient grounds for sentence reduction or pardon, especially in cases involving violent crimes.
- The diagnosis of DID, major depression, and PTSD may not be viewed by all as mitigating factors in the commission of a crime, particularly if the crime was premeditated.
- The assertion that Sarah is not the same person may not convince those who believe in strict accountability for one's actions, regardless of personal change over time.
- Actions taken after the crime, such as giving away a dog or getting a tattoo, may not be universally accepted as indicators of a desire to start anew.
- The fairness of the trial may be co ...
Actionables
- You can educate yourself on the complexities of the criminal justice system by reading books or articles written by legal experts, psychologists, and those who have been directly affected by the system. This will give you a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by individuals like Sarah and the potential for reform. For example, you might read "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander to understand systemic issues or "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson to learn about advocacy and legal challenges.
- You can support rehabilitation by volunteering with organizations that provide educational and emotional support to incarcerated individuals. By offering your time to tutor, mentor, or simply listen, you contribute to the positive transformation of someone's life. Look for local nonprofits or national programs like the Prison Education Project, which often seek volunteers without requiring a background in law or social work.
- You can engag ...
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1-Page Summary- Sarah's traumatic childhood and history of abuse
- The development and role of Sarah's dissociative identity disorder (DID)
- Arguments around Sarah's guilt vs. victimhood, and whether Harold was also a perpetrator
- The trial process and controversial decisions about admissible evidence
- Sarah's life in prison and efforts by advocates to get her sentence reduced or pardoned
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