Lethal Losses - When Women Kill (Paperback)

Based on interviews with women who have killed, this book examines links between early-life experiences and later acts of lethal violence. Specifically, it explores how the experience of early-childhood losses combined with a subsequent lack of social supports exacerbated the impact upon personality development in these women and resulted in trauma. Indications of how trauma laid the foundation for committing later acts of violence are demonstrated and discussed. As part of a study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse which investigated the drug-relatedness of killings by women, 215 semi-structured, conversational interviews were conducted in New York State prisons with women convicted for murder or manslaughter. Of the 60% who reported that they had committed the homicide, 50 were randomly selected for narrative analysis. The fabric of these women's losses are presented through vignettes, which then are interwoven with theoretical explanations of their violent behaviour. Recommendations are offered for prevention and early intervention in the lives of women who are predisposed to violence.