Australian Psychotic Mother Killed Eight Children
Mother Psychotic When She Killed Eight Children, Queensland Court Rules
Mother who Stabbed Eight Children to Death 'was Smoking 20 Cones of Cannabis a Day and Thought a Bird Chirping was a Signal from God to Commit Murder'
Guardian Australia, 4 May 2017 The Cairns mother who stabbed eight children to death will not face trial because smoking cannabis her whole life gave her schizophrenia and religious delusions she was the 'Chosen One'. Raina Thaiday, 37, thought she was saving her four sons, four daughters, and one niece from the end of the world when she stabbed them to death at the family's Manoora home on December 19, 2014. She was smoking up to 20 cones of cannabis a day when she developed a severe form of schizophrenia. Religious delusions began about one month before the stabbing. The 37-year-old believed she was the 'Chosen One' and became obsessed with cleansing to protect her and her family from demons. The night before the attack, neighbours overheard Thaiday talking to herself: 'You hurt my kids, I hurt them first. You stab my kids, I stab them first. If you kill them, I'll kill them.' http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857646550.jpg http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857714063.jpg Malili (standing left) and Daniel (standing right), along with (sitting, from left) Rayden, Petronella, Rodney and (far right) Azariah were allegedly killed by their mother. A cousin (second from right) is not a victim The next day, Thaiday heard a 'dove call' telling her it was time to act. The mother first killed the family's pet duck, then turned on the children - four boys and four girls, aged between two and 14 years Quickly realising what she had done, Thaiday stabbed herself 35 times and waited to die on the front verandah where she was found by her adult son Lewis Warria, who called triple zero. She was charged with eight counts of murder. But Justice Jean Dalton last month ruled in Queensland's Mental Health Court that Thaiday suffered a psychotic episode and was of 'unsound mind' at the time of the attack. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857587406.jpg A fence surrounds the house in which eight children were stabbed to death in Manoora, Cairns http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857954899.jpg Police attend the crime scene at the Manoora home after the eight children were found dead 'To her way of thinking at that time what she was doing was the best thing she could do for her children, she was trying to save them,' Justice Dalton said. Several psychiatrists agreed Thaiday's persistent cannabis abuse triggered her schizophrenia despite the illness usually manifesting in the younger years of life. Thaiday did give up drugs and alcohol as part of her obsession with cleansing but by then it was too late, the symptoms had acquired 'a life of their own'. The night before the murders, neighbours reported seeing Thaiday pacing back and forth talking to herself or on the phone that in hindsight were clearly psychotic. 'I have the power to kill people and to curse people,' Thaiday said. 'You hurt my kids, I hurt them first. You stab my kids, I stab them first. If you kill them, I'll kill them.' http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857655710.jpg Local residents line the road as a hearse carrying one of the coffins of eight children drives by Murray Street in Manoora, Cairns, where the children were stabbed to death http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857981732.jpg Mourners attend a floral tribute for the eight children near the crime scene, just days after the stabbing,,,,,, Treating psychiatrist Angela Voita told the court Thaiday had poor insight into her illness and was reluctant to take medication. Dr Voita said while she was currently stable, Thaiday was able to hide her more subtle symptoms from those who did not know her well, and could be violent to herself and others if not medicated. The court heard Thaiday remained in a state of psychosis until July 2015 despite attempts to alleviate her symptoms with several different anti-psychotic medications. She has since relapsed twice, once at the two-year anniversary of the murders, and expressed the desire to kill other patients in the high-security facility where she is being held. Psychiatrist Frank Varghese said Thaiday's illness was 'schizophrenia at its very depth and at its worst'. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857983958.jpg Mourners, believed to be relatives, grieve at the scene after Thaiday stabbed the eight children to death http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857987035.jpg A man believed to be the father of some of the eight children stabbed to death is held up by family members two days after the attack 'This is quite a unique case and a horrendous case, the likes of which I've never seen before,' Dr Varghese told the court. The court heard Thaiday had no criminal history and had not been in contact with psychiatric services despite previous disturbing episodes. Justice Dalton ordered Thaiday continue to receive involuntary treatment and be allowed escorted leave on the grounds of the high-security health facility where she is being held. She said she was impressed that Thaiday had acknowledged what she'd done and appreciated her rehabilitation was being hindered by grief and post-traumatic stress disorder. 'Her children were the things that had given her the most happiness in life,' Justice Dalton said. http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/...3857988641.jpg A woman cries during a memorial service for the eight children - Malili Warria, Vita Thaiday, Shantae Warria, La'Torrence Warria, Azariah Willie, Daniel Willie, Rodney Willie and Patranella Willie The Mental Health Act prohibited Justice Dalton's decision, made on April 6, from being published for 28 days. Quote:
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