Family Annihilation (Female Perpetrated)

“WOMEN ARE NOT VIOLENT.” - The biggest myth of all time. (And this myth was invented in the late-20th century).

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The following quote by expert Jack Levin, director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict at Northeastern University in Boston and author of the book “Extreme Killing.” Extreme Killing: Understanding Serial and Mass Murder [Sage Publications, Inc; 1 edition, 2005] on the subject of family annihilation is frequently repeated in the popular press:

“The pattern [of family annihilation cases] is so strong. It’s almost always a husband-father who methodically executes the members of his family. He plans the attack far in advance. He’s suffered a prolonged period of frustration and depression. He experiences what he sees as the catastrophic loss of his children. He blames everybody but himself for his problems.”

It is not clear what “almost always” is meant to signify. But the effect of this phasing is to lull the hearer or reader into forgetting about VbW (Violence by Women).

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►• ►•  Don't miss the collection of remarkable (and forgotten -- until now) IMAGES at the bottom of this post.

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The “pattern” Dr. Levin describes does not however comport with findings in newspaper reports where such familicides are far from “almost always” deeds done by men. In fact family annihilation by women appears so often in sources that are consulted for the purpose of researching a different type of crime – serial murder – that collecting them all has been an impossible task. An effort will be made here to begin to examine historical cases of female perpetrated family annihilation.

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With regard to the family annihilator with a worry over child custody who “experiences what he sees as the catastrophic loss of [the perpetrator’s] children” we can offer up many, many compelling cases showing that the “gendered” criminological approach. When expressed with such language that deflects from female perpetrators as “almost always” in reference to the male sex as what is commonly thought of as “the violent sex,” the generalizations tend to cause the reader to imagine incorrectly that female aggression is uncommon and nonthreatening.

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Here is a typical statement of criminological “fact” which is not a fact but rather a bold-faced lie that comes from ideological academics who subscribe to the fallacy of fundamentalist social constructionism:

“A woman usually kills her husband only in self defence but almost never takes the lives of her children as part of the attack, a leading criminologist said today. [Paul Carter, Police Reporter, “Murder-suicide defies usual criminal pattern,” AAP (Australian Associated Press), Mar. 21, 2005, p. 1]

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CHECKLIST: Family Annihilation cases involving 2 or more family members murdered on the same day:

Cases involving a child custody dispute are not included. They are to be found at and at:

1) Maternal Filicide: Spousal Revenge Motive: Facts vs.Feminism (24 cases)

2) Maternal Filicide: Spousal Revenge

1616 – Margaret Vincent – London, England – husband, 2 children

1811 – Marie-Madeleine Albert – Le Bois Garrot, Biozat commune, France – 4 murders (murder, father, brother, sister) (Jan. 15)

1816 – Susannah Holroyd – Ashton-under-Lyne, England – husband, 2 children (Apr. 15)

1819 – Mrs. Lyman Perry – Malone, Franklin county, New York – 4 children poisoned (2 survived), suicide (Jun. 18)

1828 – Mlle. Treuque – Auch Assizes, France – 4 deaths (father, mother, 2 brothers); 2 survived – 8 months of poisoning; 4 buried same day (Dec. 27)

1840 – Samantha Locke – Union, New York – 3 children dead, attempted suicide (Dec. 26)

1841 – Mrs. Roper – Louisville, Mississippi – 3 children (decapitated) (Jul. 18)

1854 – Mary Ann Brough – Esher, England – killed six of her seven children (Jun. 10)

1856 – Mrs. Lott Ward – Sullivan, Illinois – 4 children, 1 escaped, attempt suicide (Mar. 23)

1858 – Christiana Schilling – Grove City, Ohio – 4 children, suicide (Sep. 22)
1865 – Sarah Haviland – Battle Creek, Michigan – 3 children (Dec.)

1869 – Madame Bonnefoy – Marseilles, France – shot: adult sister (survived), husband (died), son (5, died), 1 other child (died); attempted suicide (Jun. 27)
1870 – Catharine Marsh – Baltimore, Rhode Island – 4 children, mother (decapitation) (Apr. 22)
1872 – Mrs. Henry Southworth – Rockport Township, Ohio – 3 children, suicide (Jul. 7)
1874 – Mrs. Michel Devine (“Dwyer”) – Brooklyn, New York – 3 children, husband (Jun. 2)
1874 – Mrs. Newton (42) – Hoxton (suburb of Sydney), NSW, Australia – Murdered daughter Jane (4 1/2) almost severing the head from the body; threatened to murder son (11) and charged at him with a knife; wounded husband, attempt suicide (Apr. 14)

1877 – Mrs. Hiram Young – Newark, Vermont – 2 children (“horribly mangling them with an axe”) (Feb. 24)

1878 – Mary Dean – Hillsboro, Missouri – 2 children (“pathetic plea”) (Aug. 27)

1880 – Annie Casey – Toronto, Canada – 3 children (2 occasions; all burned to death) (Dec. 2)

1880 – Margaret (or, Mary) O’Connor – Jersey City, New Jersey – 3 children

1880 – Elizabeth Woodruff – Rochester, N. Y. – 2 children dead (daughter, 6; son, 2), suicide attempt (May 5)

1882 – Mrs. Dr. Edward Seguin – New York, New York – 3 children, suicide (Oct. 31)

1883 – Wife of Antonio Valdez – Lampasas, Mexico – 5 children, suicide (Sep. 26)

1883 –  Mrs. Zemperck – Milwaukee, Wi. –3 daughters (4, 20 mo., 4 mo.; dismembered & mutilated) (Jan. 23)

1884 – Amelia Barnett – Easton, Pennsylvania – 2 children (Apr. 26)

1885 – Mrs. Kruegle – Pacific, Missouri – 1 child dead, 2 survived (Mar. 19)

1885 – Mary Ellen Williams – Yorkville, N. C. – husband dead; 2 step-children dead; another child “not expected to live” (Aug. 17)

1886 – Fannie Smith – Granville, Middletown, Township, New Jersey – 3 children dead; 1 survived (with nearly severed wrist, lost 3 fingers); suicide (Apr. 24)

1887 – Antoinette Calbalek – Cleveland, Ohio – 3 children, 2 children wounded (Jan. 20)

1888 – “Baracoa Mother” – Baracoa, Cuba – 4 children (decapitate) (Mar.)

1888 – Minne Liebkuchner (Lebuchner) – New York, N. Y. – 2 sons dead (9, 7, 4), 1 survived but may have died later on (Mar. 21) 

1891 – Mrs. Frank Hancock – Blue Run, Pennsylvania – husband, 4 children (corpses “frightfully mutilated”; falsely accused her murdered husband of the crime) (Apr.; actual killer discovered in Jul.1891)

1891 – Ludwig Anderson – Brockton, Massachusetts – 3 children (jealous) (Jan. 23)

1892 – Martha Kuester (Kester) – Mankato, Minnesota – 2 children dead (Dec. 7)

1892 – Lena Brown Schmidt – Bordentown, N. J. (3 children; son, 5; plus 2 she was babysitting: 3, 1 ½ ) (Sep. 26)

1893 – “Obecse Stepmother” – Obecse, Hungary – 4 step-children

1895 – Mary Caruthers – Paris, Texas – 2 children (to elope with paramour) (Mar. 10)

1895 – Margaret McBournie – Boston, Massachusetts – 2 children (Jan. 24)

1895 – Mrs. H. H. B. Williams – Grove City, Ohio – 2 children (Apr. 2)

1896 – Mrs. Charles W. Green – Kansas City, Missouri – 3 children, suicide (Aug. 29)

1896 – Ethel Kelso – Chicago, Illinois – 2 children, suicide attempt (Feb. 21)

1896 – Mrs. Swearnier – Lewis County, Io. – 3 children dead (daughters: 5, 3, 9 mo.) (Nov. 27)

1897 – Mrs. Jacob Peyer – Park River, North Dakota – 4 children, suicide (Dec. 24)

1897 – Karoline Rivinus – New York, New York – 4 children, suicide (Sep. 30)

1897 – Mrs. James Walsh – Seymour, Australia – 4 children dead, 1 survived, attempted suicide (Aug. 5)
1898 – Mrs. Joseph Clotier – St. Severin, Canada – 4 children (mutilated corpses) (Oct.)

1898 – Mrs. Glover – Tubunna, New Zealand – “murdered six children, and then disappeared with the seventh” (Mar. 2)

1898 – Kate Mangan – Chicago, Illinois – 2 children, suicide (Aug. 24)

1898 – Lena Shorri – Poughkeepsie, New York – 2 children (decapitated) (May 21)

1899 – Mrs. S. J. McCullough – Toledo, Ohio – 3 children (poisoned, survived), survived (Jan. 21)

1899 – Mary Stevenson – Detroit Michigan – 2 children, suicide (Aug. 1)

1900 – Lillian Smith – New York, New York – 2 children dead, 1 wounded, suicide (Oct. 5)

1901 – Lizzie Naramore – Cold Brook, Massachusetts – 6 children, attempted suicide (Mar. 22)

1901 – Rosa Wurzer – Uniontown, Washington – 6 children, attempted suicide (Feb. 24)

1902 – Mrs. Shepeard R. Busey – Everett, Washington – husband, child, suicide (Apr. 9)

1902 – Mrs. John L. Kingsbury – Denver, Colarado – 2 children, suicide (May 9)
1902 – Mrs. Louis Westrope – Brandywine, Miss. – 6 children dead (followed by arson) (Jun. 16)

1903 – Mrs. Peter Burke; Fiskdale, Pa.; 4 children murdered with axe (6, 5, 18 mo., 5 mo.), suicide (Mar. 23)
1903 – Mrs. Louis Iverson – Pacific Grove, California – 3 children (Oct. 24)

1905 – Naomi Aldrich – Grayling, Mich. – 2 children, (plan to elope, insurance) (Aug. 12 (arrested))

1905 – Olga Anthony – Grove City, Ohio – 3 (1 in 1898;  + 2 in 1905) recidivist

1905 – Alice Brennan – Minneapolis, Minnesota – 3 step-children, suicide attempt (Nov. 4)

1905 – Mary Brockwell – Paducah, New York – 3 children (Mar. 24)

1905 – Julia (Mrs. Clarence E.) Markham – Alpha (Cambridge), Illinois – 7 children, suicide (arson; husband/father after hearing the news also committed suicide) (Oct. 2)

1906 – Annie L. Dixon – Boston, Massachusetts – 4 children, suicide (Feb. 6)

1906 – Mary Fahm – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 2 children, suicide (Apr. 24)

1906 – Mrs. Henry Knippen – Cloverdale, Ohio – 2 children decapitated (boy (3), girl (1 ½) (Sep. 6)

1906 – Mrs. Frank Palsgrove – Biggot, Arkansas – husband, 3 children (Aug. 21)

1906 – Mrs. John W. Waters – New York, New York – 3 children, suicide (Feb. 19)

1907 – Mrs. J. S. Mundelle – Connersville, Indiana – 2 children, suicide (Feb. 13)

1908 – Mrs. Rev. W. A. Brown – Portsmouth, Virginia – 2 children, suicide (Jul. 18)

1908 – Mrs. Daniel Cooper – Cadillac, Michigan – husband, 6 children, suicide (Jun. 11)

1908 – Mrs. John Rosen – Montpelier, Idaho – 4 children, suicide (Dec. 19)

1908 – Isabella Sahlen –  Buffalo, New York – 3 children, suicide (Jul. 18)

1909 – Mrs. J. M. Green – Richland, Texas – 3 children, suicide (Jun. 6)

1909 – Mrs. John Lensch – Cedar Rapids, Iowa – 2 children dead, 3 injured, suicide (arson) (Mar. 27)

1909 – “Oxford Grocer’s Wife” – Oxford, England – killed 2 children, killed husband (cut throats) (Apr. 5)

1909 – Mrs. John A. Powell – Rockwell City, Iowa – 4 children, suicide (Jan. 5)

1909 – Mrs. Antone Straus – East Grand Forks, Minnesota – 2 children (decapitated) (Aug. 30)

1910 – Mrs. James R. Mann – Lancaster, Pennsylvania – 3 children (poisoned, survived) (Oct. 1)

1910 – Cecilia McClusky – Bendigo, Victoria, Australia – killed 3 children, decapitation; arson (Aug. 8)

1910 – “Zakharova Girl” – Zakharova, Tomsk, Siberia – brother (12, killed with axe), mother (broke spine, cut off arms), uncle (“grievously injured”), aunt (attacked) (ca. June)

1911 – Ellen C. Johnson – Braddock, North Dakota – 6 children, suicide (arson) (Oct. 24)

1912 – Mrs. John Kulp – Allentown, Pennsylvania – 4 poisoned, survived (H, M-in-l, f-in-l, sister) (ca. Jan. 2)

1912 – Sarah Syphers – New York, New York – 3 children (murders Aug. 28; suicide on Oct. 3, 1913)

1913 – Alice Brocan – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 4 children, suicide (Aug. 2)

1913 – Mrs. Jerome Harris – Toledo, Ohio – 1 dead (drowned); 3 rescued from arson fire (May 23)

1913 – Mary Kulasa – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 2 infant daughters dead (May 8)

1913 – Mrs. Manny Sleep – Elgin, Illinois – 2 children, suicide (Apr. 19)

1914 – Elizabeth Diamond – New York, New York – 2 children, suicide (Apr. 14)

1917 – Mrs. Everett Crozier – Greeley, Colorado – 5 children, suicide (Jan. 10)

1917 – Mrs. James Nelson – Chillicothe, Ohio – husband, child, suicide (Aug. 18)

1919 – Mrs. N. F. Soderberg – Madison, Minnesota – 3 children (under 5) (May 18)

1919 – Mrs. C. B. Slaughter – Richmond, Virginia – 3 children, suicide (Sep. 3)

1919 – Mary Stavisar – Kimberly, Ohio – 7 children, suicide (Jul. 29)

1920 – Laura Balada – Morris Park, Long Island, New York – 3 children, suicide (May 18)

1920 – Laura L. Brown – Madera, California – 2 children, suicide attempt (Aug. 24)

1920 – Mrs. W. H. Ward – Cuthbert, Georgia – 4 children, 1 dead, 3 survived, suicide attempt (May 23)

1920 – Maude Westbrook – Petersburg, Va. – shoots 2 children; daughter, 6, dead; son, 5, “probably fatally wounded” (Aug. 9)

1920 – Mollie Woolsert – Marietta, Oh. – 2 children dead (daughters 7 & 4), suicide (Nov. 13)

1923 – Josephine Antoinette Driggs – Jamaica, New York – 2 children, suicide (Jul. 16)

1924 – Mrs. Anton Antal – Perth Amboy, New Jersey – 2 children, suicide (Nov. 29)

1924 – Emma Hobaugh – Logansport, Indiana – 4 dead (f, m, br, child) (Dec. 30)

1924 – Bessie Katz – New York, New York – 2 children died (baby boys), attempted suicide (Dec. 2)

1924 – Mrs. Ott Morgan – Salina, Kansas – husband, child, suicide (Nov. 2)

1924 – Rosemary Sparkman – Salt Lake City, Utah – 2 sons, suicide (Dec. 9)

1925 – Mrs. George H. Curtis – Boston, Massachusetts – husband, 2 children (1 survived), suicide (Aug. 13)

1926 – Mrs. Scott Allen – Laurel, Mississippi – 4 children (Aug. 2)

1926 – Ada B. Chamberlain – Los Angeles, California – 3 children, suicide (Oct. 17 (?))

1928 – Masuya Hirano – Los Angeles, California – husband, 2 children, shot (Jan. 8)

1929 – Mrs. Jose Pazos – New York, New York – 6 children, suicide (Feb. 15)

1929 – Mamie Shey Shoaf – Lebanon, Kentucky – 3 children, suicide (May 25?)

1929 – Helen Smith – Blenheim, Ontario, Canada – 3 children.( Paris green, arson) (ca. Mar. 18)

1929 – Muriel Wilson – Sakatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada – 4 children, suicide (May 11)

1930 – Mrs. Charles A. Anderson – Geneva, Illinois – husband, son, suicide (Jul. 21)

1930 – Mary Pfeiffer – Baltimore, Maryland – husband, 2 children, suicide attempt (May 12)

1930 – Mrs. Albino De Porre – Chicago, Illinois – 3 children, suicide (May 10)

1930 – Mrs. Kine Matsumoto – Los Angeles, California – 2 children, suicide (May 28)

1930 – Vlema Lorene Swafford – Hot Springs, Arkansas – 2 children, suicide attempt (Nov. 17)

1930 – Ida Twadell – Chester, Pennsylvania – 2 children (Dec. 6)

1930 – Ethel Geller Yeldem – Columbus, Ohio – 6 children, suicide attempt (May 7)

1931 – Ruth Bearce – Glens Falls, New York – 3 children (Jun. 21)

1931 – Mrs. Earle Williams – San Francisco, California – 2 children, suicide, suicide of here mother (in pact) (Aug. 10)

1932 – Mildred Briggs – Niagara Falls, New York – 2 children, suicide (Mar. 21)

1932 – Mrs. Raymond Fosdick – Montclair, New Jersey – 2 children, suicide (Apr. 4)

1932 – Agnes Murr – York, Pennsylvania – 2 children, suicide attempt (May 4)

1933 – Inez Carrell – Charleston, Illinois – 3 children (Oct. 22)

1933 – Mrs. Arthur Dickrell – Sheboygan, Mi. – father dead, 5 survived (employee, 4 children), attempt suicide (Jun. 28)

1933 – Mrs. Walter C. Gardner – Springfield, New Hampshire – 3 children, suicide (Jun. 1)

1933 – Virginia Fraser Pratt – Atlanta, Ga. – daughter (10) killed, son (12) survived; suicide (Jan. 17)
1934 – Clara Dempsey – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – 7 deaths (sister, husband, baby 3 other relatives, suicide) (Dec. 24)

1934 – Minnie Rose Jenkins – Little Rock, Arkansas – 3 children (ca. Nov. 24)

1934 – Kathryn D. Schoch – Dunkirk, New York – 6 dead: sister, brother, 4 nephews (11, 6, 9, age?) sister-in-law, suicide (Dec. 24)
1935 –  Ethel Howard – Leroy, Il. – shot sister (44, died), brother (55, died) nephew, (survived), father (78, died) (Feb. 18)
1936 – Eleanor Feeley – Pittsbugh, Pennsylvania – 2 children, suicide (Jun. 18)

1936 – Annie E. Jones – Madison, Maine – 3 children, suicide (Sep. 10)

1936 – Carabell Lawhorn Nahas – Boston, Massachusetts – 2 children, suicide (Nov. 28)

1936 – Mrs. Marcus Studdar – Carbon Hill, Alabama – husband, 2 children, suicide (Sep. 1)

1937 – Jenney Galley – Hawk Run, Clearfield county, Pa. – murdered 2 daughters with hammer (17, 5) (Mar. 5)
1937 – Jeanette Martin – Aurora, Illinois – 3 children, suicide (Easter Sunday, Mar. 28) 

1937 – Mrs. G. R. McAinich – Norfolk, Iowa – 5 children, suicide (Oct. 31)

1937 – Elsie Nollen – Denison, Iowa – 6 children, suicide (Aug. 29)

1938 – Margaret Thomsen – Riverhead, New York – 2 children (Mar. 7)

1940 – Lillian Edwards – Fresno, California – 3 children (Dec. 11)
1940 – Mrs. Cecil E. Friday – Selma, Al. – murdered 2 sons (14, 10), suicide attempt (Mar. 23)

1940 – Louise Nicosa – New York, New York – 6 children, attempt suicide (Jul. 10)

1943 – Christine Dickey – Dayton, Ohio – 3 children, suicide (Jul. 31)

1945 – Inez Campbell – Glasgow, Montana – 4 children dead, 1 survived, suicide (May 25)

1947 – Constance Walker – Beecroft, Australia – 2 children killed; 1 child battered with wrist slashed; attempted suicide (Mar. 24)
1948 – Georgette Brucks – Los Angeles, California – 2 children (Oct. 26)

1948 – Frances Irene McCurdy – Grants Pass, Oregon – 2 children (Sep. 3)

1948 – Margaret Louise Morgroft – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – 4 children, suicide (Apr. 13)

1949 – Estelle Lewandowski – attempt to murder 3 children (1 dead; “drowns son, self; second son saves baby”), suicide (Jan. 2)

1950 – Hattie May Turner – Cairo, Georgia – 5 dead (husband, 3 children, next door neighbor), suicide (Mar. 10 suicide)

1952 – Louise Coonan – Fort Knox, Kentucky – 4 children, attempt suicide (Jan. 16)

1952 – Mary Edna Glenn – Oakland, California – 2 children (May 31)

1952 – Ruth Nikki – Westminster, Massachusetts – 3 children, suicide (Dec. 27)

1952 – Virginia Blair Rudy – Gentryville, Indiana – 3 children, suicide attempt (Jan. 31)

1954 – Florence Dalton – Detroit, Michigan – 2 children, suicide attempt (weapons used: baseball bat, 2 butcher knives, razor) (Jan. 15)
1954 & 1966 – Constance Fisher – Waterville, Kennebeck County, Maine – 3 children (Mar. 8, 1954) & 3 children (Jun. 30, 1966)
1954 – Olive Losser – Oakland, California – killed husband, 2 sons, suicide (Oct. 4)

1955 – Ann Williams – Galveston, Texas – 2 children (bodies dismembered and buried) (Feb. 20)

1956 – Mrs. Everett Brewer – Palos Verdes Estates, California – 2 children, suicide (Jan. 23)

1956 – Opal Collins – Crown Point, Indiana – paralyzed husband, mother-in-law, 2 sisters-in-law (May 26)

1956 – Lorene Culbeck – Lake Wales, Florida – 3 children (shot) (May 25)

1956 – Vidella McNamara – Fowler, Ca. – 2 sons murdered with deer rifle (5, 3), suicide (Jan. 11)
1956 – Mrs. Middleton – Rockford, Illinois – 2 children, suicide attempt (Oc. 13)

1957 – Patricia Robertson – Wood River, Illinois – 3 children, suicide (Feb. 12)

1958 – Mildred Biddeman – Buffalo, New York – husband, 2 children, suicide (Oct. 21)

1958 – Mrs. Melvin Hudson – Brownfield, Alabama – husband, four children, suicide (Jan. 18 or 19)

1959 – Ruth Urdanivia – Allentown, Pennsylvania – 5 children, attempt suicide (Oct. 14)

1960 – Marianne Breidenbach – Canoga Park, California – husband, 2 children (1 shot 3 times, survived), suicide (Mar. 17)

1960 – Martha Hall – Hollywood, Florida – husband, 5 children (4 dead, 1 survived) (Jan. 18)

1960 – Alice Elaine Hardin – Jacksonville, Florida – 2 children, suicide (Feb. 2)

1960 – Ann Skovsky – New York, New York – 1 child dead, 2 wounded (Mar. 7)

1960 – Vicki Vanderlinden – Hayfork, California – husband, 2 children, suicide (Aug. 14)

1961 – Eva Lea Jackson – Alamogordo, New Mexico – 2 children, suicide (Mar. 1)
1961 – Lummie Jean Kicklighter Richardson – Atlanta, Georgia – husband, 3 children (Aug. 18)

1962 – Hilda Dillon – Santa Ana, California – 3 children, suicide (Jul. 7)

1962 – Ann Fitzgibbon – Topeka, Kansas – slashed throats, 4 children: Eilly, 5; Tommy, 4; Jeffrey, 2; Kelley, 1; suicide (Dec. 2)

1963 – Jean W. Adams – El Paso, Texas – 3 children, suicide (Apr. 5)

1963 – Elizabeth Gregor – Prospect, Pennsylvania – husband, 5 children, suicide (Jun. 17)

1964 – Judith E. Cox – Falls Church, Virginia – three children dead, 1 child survived; suicide (Feb. 14)

1964 – Nori Jenkins – Topeka, Ks. – 2 daughters murdered (3, 23 mo.; strangled with belt; told police: “I want my belt back.”) (Jan. 3)
1964 – Shirley O’Brien – Washington, Pennsylvania – husband, 2 children, suicide (Feb. 12)

1964 – Elizabeth Stevens McIntyre Takagi – Wheaton, Maryland – 3 children (including pregnant daughter), suicide (Jan. 31)

1965 – Mary Sartin – Bay View, Ohio – husband, 5 children, suicide (Aug. 13)

1966 – Jeanette Euart – Milpitas, California – husband, 3 children, suicide (Aug. 2)

1967 – Patricia Zichichi – Richmond, California – 4 children, suicide (Jun. 7)

1968 – Sally Wertenberger – Cleveland, Ohio – 3 children, suicide (Mar. 27)

1969 – Glenda E. Cooper – Schoharie, New York – 3 children (axe) (Feb. 23)

1971 – Elinore Basore – Fayetteville, Arkansas – 4 murdered, 3 wounded (middle-aged and elderly relatives) (Sep. 4)

1971 – Bettilee Beaudry (32) – Greenhills, Ohio – husband, Joseph B. (34), son, John Allen B. (8); Joseph Norman B.; attempted suicide (gunshot) (Feb. 18)
1971 – Raymonde Jouhanno – Pontivy, France – husband, 3 children, suicide (Aug. 28)

1971 – Peggy Selman Whalen – Corpus Christi, Texas – husband, 4 children, suicide (Dec. 31)

1974 – Shirley Marie Curry – Lowell, Massachusetts – Dead are Jimmy Lee Curry,  43, of 406 Michael St.. Springdale, Mrs. Curry's former husband; the couple's three children. Sabrina Marie Curry, 17, Richard Allen Curry, 14, and Jessie Lee Curry, 11; and Miss Jo Ann Brophy, 31, of 1710 South Young St. in Springdale, Jimmy Lee Curry's step-sister. (Jul. 20)

1976 – Patricia Bolin – Upper Arlington, Ohio – Husband, 2 children, suicide (Dec. 8)

1976 – Melinda Dixon – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – 2 children, suicide (Oct. 4)

1976 – Geraldine Bisacky Hansen – Donora, Pennsylvania – 3 children, suicide (Jul. 25)
1978 – Glada Fern Hibbard – Colorado Springs, Co. – Thomas H. (58); d, Deborah H. (16); Duane H. (12); suicide (gunshots) (Sep. 24)
1979 – Barbara Yorkey – Winston-Salem, N. C. – Gerald H. (27); s, Michael Y (6); s, Will (3); suicide (gunshots) (Jan. 15)

1983 – Barbara Carroll – Mastic Beach, New York – 2 children, suicide (Aug. 11)
1983 – Ethel Mae Franken (32) – Aplington, Iowa – shot to death: husband, Darrell John Franken, 37, and their children, Troy Vance, 13, Valerie May, 11, and Dustin Jon, 7; suicide (Jan. 18)
1984 – Emmly McCave – Fresno, California – 3 children, suicide (Oct. 3)
1985 – Ledda Quintano – Hollywood, Florida – 2 children suicide attempt (Oct. 14)
1987 – Frances Newton – Harris County “outside Houston” Texas – shot to death: Adrian N. (23) husband; Alton N. (7); Farah Elaine N. (21 mo.) (insurance) (Apr. 7)
1988 – Jacqueline Fuson – Los Chavez, New Mexico – husband, 3 children, suicide (Apr. 5)

1988 – Lillian Moore Rotella (31) – Stony Point, N.Y. – Murdered Edward, husband; Edward III R. (7); Kyle R. (4) (Dec. 22)

1989 – Kathleen King – Carol City, California – 3 children (girls), attempt suicide by ordering 8-year-old son to stab her (Oct. 3)
1990 – Maria Isabella Amaya – Port Chester, N. Y. – 4 children: Halley William, 11; 8; Christopher, 6; Edward, 3; stabbed; att. suicide (lye) (May 30)
1992 – Tracy Loper Matthews – Long Beach, Ca. – shot to death: Kevin Strong Matthews Sr. (26); stabbed several times in the heart 3 children: Khareema (4), Nyomi (3), and Kevin Jr. (2) (May 11)

1992 – Robin Lee Row – Boise, Idaho – husband, 2 children (insurance) (Feb. 10)

1998 – Khoua Her – St. Paul, Minn. – 6 children strangled (Sep. 3)
1998 – Sylvia Martinez – La Puente, Ca. – Alejandro Gil, 28, and Sylvia Martinez, 25, and the children as Abigail, 6, and Alex, 3 (gunshots); suicide (ca. Jan. 26)

1998 – Ann Young – Bayonne, N. J. – 2 children dead (daughter, 7; son, 4), attempt suicide (Aug. 25)

1999 – Tonya Avery – Nashville, Tennessee – 3 children, suicide (May 15?)

1999 – Kelly Silk – East Hartford, Ct. – husband, Charles Silk, 39, and two of her children, Jennifer, 3, and Jonah, 17 months old (Jun. 10)
1999 – Caro Socorro – Santa Rosa Valley, California – 3 children, suicide attempt (Nov. 22)

2000 – JoAnn Gelsomino – Mahopac, N. Y. – husband, Ralph (59);  d Amanda (26); son, Anthony (22); suicide (Jan. 1)
2000 – Judy Kirby – Indianapolis, Indiana – 4 children, plus 4 strangers, suicide attempt (deliberate auto collision) (Mar. 25)

2001 – Lillie Morgan – Mannheim, Germany (US military) – 2 children (Sep. 18)

2001 – Robin Parker – Lauradale Acres, N. C. – 3 children dead (daughters: 10, 2; son, 11-mo.), suicide (Jun. 26)

2001 – Bridget Stovall – Cincinnati (?), Ohio – 2 children dead (daughter, 4; son, 20-mo.) (Apr. 7)

2001 – Mee Xiong – St. Paul, Mn – 2 children dead (daughters: 3, 15-mo.), attempt suicide (Jul. 17)

2002 – Dee Etta Perez – Hudson Oaks, Texas – husband, 3 children, suicide (Jul. 16)

2003 – Deanna Laney – New Chapel Hill, Texas – 3 children, 1 survived (stoned to death) (May 9)
2004 – Hollie Gable (39) – Zion Grove, Pa. – Shot to death: boyfriend Kenneth M. Cragle (39); Jared Brown, son (18); Kirsten Brown, daughter (16), Kelsey Brown, daughter (13); suicide; child custody dispute (May 2)
2004 – Andrea Labbe – Toronto, Canada – 2 children slashed (daughter, 3 died; daughter, 2, survived), husband killed; suicide (Dec. 1)

2005 – Magdalena Lopez – Dyer, Indiana – 2 children dead (son (9), son (2), beaten with dumbbell (Jul.)

2005 – Sally Winter – Maitland, NSW, Australia – husband, 2 children, suicide (Mar. 20)

2005 – Nathshay Yvonne Ward – Huntsville, Alabama – 3 children (circa Feb. 2)

2006 – Angelica Salazar Alvarez – Elkhart County, Indiana – 4 children, suicide attempt  (Nov. 14)

2006 – Eleazar Paula Mendez – De Queen, Arkansas – 3 children killed; claimed they asked to be killed (Jan. 27)
2007 – Manling Tsang Williams – Rowland Heights, California – husband; 2 children (sword) (Aug. 7)

2008 – Shabnam – accomplice, Saleem (male) – Bawankhedi, Hasanpur tehsil of Amroha, Uttar Pradesh, India – 6 drugged, murdered with axe: father (55), mother (50), brother (35), sister-in-law (25), brother (22), female cousin (14), baby (10-mo.) (Apr.14-15)
2011 – Susan Hendricks – Pickens, South Carolina – killed her sons Matthew, 23, and Marshall, 20, as well as her ex-husband and next-door-neighbor Mark Hendricks, 52, and her stepmother Linda Burns, 64.(Oct. 14)
2011 – Sara McMeen – Emington, Illinois – “boyfriend,” 3 children, suicide (Dec. 16)

2011 – Julie Schenecker – Tampa, Florida – 2 children (Jan. 27)

2013 – Dr. Parminder Kaur (46) –  Jagraon town of Ludhiana district, India – poisoned to death: husband, Gurpreet Singh (44) Ishmeet Kaur (13) and son Jashanpreet Singh (8).suicide by hanging (Oct. 17)
2012 – Rajwa Kol (26) – Malkham village, Sidhi district, Madhya Pradesh, India – husband and 2 children; wounded 7 non-family members (Mar. 3)2013 – Guadalupe Ronquillo-Ovalle – Rice, Texas – shot to death 4: husband (33), 3 sons (10, 8, 4) (Sep. 19)
2013 – Angelica Vazquez – Mesquite, Texas – husband, 2 children, suicide (Mar. 8)

2014 – Carol Coronado – Torrance, California – 3 children (May 20)

2014 – Sylvia Marie Majewska – Detroit, Mi. – son (29), granddaughter (7 mo.) (Nov. 22)

2014 – Sonya Katrina Spoon – Cheverly, Maryland – 2 children (Sep. 12)
2015 – Anarda De La Caridad Perez Friman (37) – Gibralter (visiting) home: Malaga, Spain) – stabbed to death: John Shannon (31), husband; Amanda (4); Eve (6 mo); suicide (Mar. 28-30?; bodies discovered Mar. 30)
2015 – Rizwan Gondal – Islamabad, Pakistan – shot to death husband, 2 children; wounded, son (11); suicide (Feb. 21 circa)2015 – Jessica Lacey McCarty – Palm Bay, Florida – 2 children dead (daughter , 7; son, 6), 1 injured (7-mo.) (Mar. 20)

2015 – Erin Lee Jordan (43) – Bellington, Lummi Nation, Washington – Michael D. Jordan (59); and their toddler son, Miles J.  (17 mo.); (Jul. 19, bodies found)

2016 – Taman Sri Sinar – Segambut, Kuala Lumpur – Mr Cheah Hing Soon, husband (34); Cheah Kai Sze, daughter (3); Kai Wen, son (7 mo.) (Sep. 24?; Sep. 26, bodies found)
2016 – Octavia Rogers – Phoenix, Arizona – 3 chn, partially dismembered (Jun. 2) 2017 – Courtney Taylor (41) – Williamsburg, Ky. – shot to death: Larry T. (51) husband, Jessie T., daughter (18), Joice T., daughter (13); Courtney T. shot by police (Jan. 14)

2019 – Oreanna Anoinette Myers (25) – Williamsburg, West Virginia – 5 chn. (3 own chn, & 2 stepchn.), suicide (Dec. 8)

2021 – Katie Perinovic (42) – Melbourne, Victoria, Australia – 3 chn., suicide (Jan. 14)

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Family Annihilation By Daughter:

1910 – Ebby Shepherd (13-year-old) – Newkirk, Oklahoma – father, uncle (heads battered with axe) (Nov.)

2006 – J. Richardson (12-y-o girl) – Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada – 2 murdered (mother, 48; father, 42; brother, 8), 23-y-o boyfriend was accomplice (Apr. 23)

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“Even in the present, the female criminal, especially the female mass murderer, continues to receive little theoretical attention in academia.” (Katie Fleming, 2012)

A recent (2012) master’s thesis takes on the problem of academic failure to study female criminality and the specific type of crime called “family annihilation,” in particular.

Katie Fleming, “The Female Family Annihilator, Restructuring Traditional Typologies: An Exploratory Study,” A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in The Faculty of Social Science and Humanities Criminology University of Ontario Institute of Technology June 2012.

https://ir.library.dc-uoit.ca/bitstream/10155/263/1/Fleming_Katie.pdf

Case histories from 1970-2010 are given for the following murderesses, each who “killed, or attempted to kill, four or more family members.”

Almarez, Stella Delores (Date of murders: June 18, 1980)

Bolin, Patricia (Date of murders: December 8, 1976)

Brar, Harjit Kaur (Date of murders: May 1, 1979)

Eubanks, Susan (Date of murders: October 26, 1997)

Her, Khoua (Date of murders: September 3, 1998)

Wright, Jeanne Anne (Date of murders: November 10, 1983)

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[8124-2-7-19; 10,442-8/24/21]
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