NY - Mari Gilbert, mother of Shannan Gilbert, murdered by daughter Sarra, 23 July 2016

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glf said:
I believe the boyfriend obviously knew this girl was suffering extra and violent emotional problems, and maybe if he had contacted Mari they could have gotten her the help she so desperately needed. Surely she was under the care of a licensed counselor, and he should have been contacted and made arrangements for her to go to the hospital ASAP! All the warning bells were going off, if the boyfriend was aware (and had to be), he should have known it was only going to get worse. This entire tragedy probably could have been avoided. This girl will most likely will never be tried and will end up with a lengthy stay in a mental hospital.
I hope her son has a dad or a close relative who can give him a good home. Obviously, he isn't safe living with his mom. So sad her son has lost an aunt, a mom, and a grandmother.
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Pretty much sums it up...
Thanks glf.
 
What a tragedy
But this is shocking...her son is lucky to be alive

kimi_SFC said:
Attorney: Shannan Gilbert’s Sister Stabbed Mother To Death « CBS New York
[...]
Gilbert is being held at Ulster County jail and is expected to be arraigned on Tuesday.

“Think about it — a mother being murdered by your own child. Can there by anything that you can consider more horrible than that?” family attorney John Ray told CBS2’s Brian Conybeare.

Sarra Gilbert and her mother lived in separate apartments at 9 Warren Street.

“Mari was invited to Sarra’s home and in the living room, she was knifed to death,” Ray said.

Ray said Sarra Gilbert is schizophrenic, has been in-and-out of mental hospitals, and turned violent in recent months, even killing a family dog right in front of her 8-year-old son.

“She drowned the puppy in the presence of her child,” Ray said. “Not so long ago, Sarra purchased a knife at Walmart and took her son into the forest nearby to put him to death. This did not occur because her boyfriend found out about it and put a stop to it.”

[...]
Audio report & More@Link
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/07/24/shannan-gilbert-mother-murder/

:(


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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glf said:
.....snipped.....
I hope her son has a dad or a close relative who can give him a good home. Obviously, he isn't safe living with his mom. So sad her son has lost an aunt, a mom, and a grandmother.
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He even lost his dog right before his eyes. :( Way too much sorrow.
How old is he? Hope he gets a stable, loving home.
 
Why was this woman out in public and not locked up in a looney bin. Seriously....she is sick. Sick in the head. As far as we know not medically supervised. WTH?

Killed puppy. Killed puppy in front of a child. Said she was going to kill her son. Why was she out in the general public.?
 
I haven't followed the Long Island cases very closely, but Shannon's mom stood out to me. I recall reading about her and thinking about her being put in the position to advocate for her daughter after she died. I marveled at the strength that took - nobody is prepared for that in life - but she took on the task. It's heartbreaking to think a mother and child were both murdered.

Rest in PEACE, Mari.
 
I believe the son is eight. I cannot imagine the horror of having his little dog drowned in front of him. I hope Sarra becomes a lifer in a mental hospital. We can all hope and pray this little boy is taken in and loved and cared for the way he should have always been. And I'm certain he should receive some counseling to get through this horrible tragedy. I'm an LPN, and what really scares me is the fact that mental illness can be inherited. Hopefully that gene wasn't passed on to him!
 
So happy the little boy is with his dad!!
 
Really? said:
Why was this woman out in public and not locked up in a looney bin. Seriously....she is sick. Sick in the head. As far as we know not medically supervised. WTH?

Killed puppy. Killed puppy in front of a child. Said she was going to kill her son. Why was she out in the general public.?
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Inthedetails said:
Some more details here: http://www.newsday.com/news/region-...repeatedly-stabbed-killed-docs-say-1.12088031

The lawyer who had been working with the family on Shannon's case will represent the daughter who killed Mari.
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It's hard to understand why Sarra Gilbert who sounds clearly schizophrenic and an actual danger to others could not be committed to a long-term mental hospital. It's just so difficult to get real help now days especially for the mentally ill. I suspect that doctors felt that if she took her medication she was safe out in the general public. Trouble is how can family members ensure the patient is taking the medication. What happened here is proof that family members are the least safe trying to deal with their mentally ill loved ones.

It's tragic that Mari had to deal with this and lost her life trying to be there for her daughter. :rose:
 
I've been trying to understand and follow movements towards solutions for mental health. Some counties in California have enacted LAURA'S LAW. I'll just post some links here for those who might be interested. The subject of change to help the mentally ill and provide safety to those who suffer from serious mental illness and safety to the general public requires awareness from communities.

Laura’s Law provides court-ordered outpatient treatment for the seriously mentally ill for up to six months. The court must find the patient is likely to become dangerous to himself or others. The patient must have a history of not complying with treatment. The process can be requested by parents, roommates, siblings, a spouse, as well as mental health workers and the police.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/health-july-dec12-lauraslaw_12-26/
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"It's hard for me to understand that anybody questions the value of it," said Brian Jacobs, whose siblings suffered from schizophrenia. "It's a horrible, horrible illness, and to leave people in psychosis on the streets is unconscionable, but we do it all the time."

County officials initially cited lack of money as a barrier. But a recent state law clarifying that counties can use funds from the Mental Health Services Act for Laura's Law helped clear the way, said Orange County Supervisor John Moorlach.

http://articles.latimes.com/2014/mar/09/local/la-me-adv-lauras-law-20140310
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http://mentalillnesspolicy.org/states/lauraslawindex.html
 
Surely the doc who has been taking care of her will only have to do anew exam and declare her mentally incompetent and sign the papers to have her put in the hospital. And the doc will have to go before a county judge and get his approval before she can leave county custody. I doubt that will be a problem. Once she is in the hospital, the docs there, and there will be more than one can give the courts periodic updates to see if she will ever be competent to stand trial. I don't think she ever will be, and she will remain in state custody in the hospital for the rest of her life.
I worked in a place considered a nsg home as well as a home for mentally and emotionally unstable. It seemed like 98% of the time, these people did fine, because they got their medicine on time, got three meals a day, etc. In other words, they stayed on exactly the same schedule day after day, and rarely anything upset that schedule. I really believe if mentally ill people get their required meds, and their schedule stays the same, and they remain in a calm controlled environment they can be calm and to an outsider, they would appear to be quite normal. There are exceptions to that scenario, but for the most part, this type of environment works well.
 
I know in the recent homeless killer case in San Diego, the suspect's mother wrote the judge in the past about him not being able to maintain within the community. I'm wondering if she was trying to get the kind of help for him that Laura's Law would've provided, but it wasn't passed yet. Her son, I believe, went off his medication recently, and is being charged with five attacks and three murders of homeless men.

San Diego County Launches Laura's Law
Aired 4/4/16
San Diego is the 11th county in California to implement Laura's Law. It's been an option in the state since 2003.
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2016/apr/04/san-diego-county-launches-lauras-law/
 
glf said:
Surely the doc who has been taking care of her will only have to do anew exam and declare her mentally incompetent and sign the papers to have her put in the hospital. And the doc will have to go before a county judge and get his approval before she can leave county custody. I doubt that will be a problem. Once she is in the hospital, the docs there, and there will be more than one can give the courts periodic updates to see if she will ever be competent to stand trial. I don't think she ever will be, and she will remain in state custody in the hospital for the rest of her life.
I worked in a place considered a nsg home as well as a home for mentally and emotionally unstable. It seemed like 98% of the time, these people did fine, because they got their medicine on time, got three meals a day, etc. In other words, they stayed on exactly the same schedule day after day, and rarely anything upset that schedule. I really believe if mentally ill people get their required meds, and their schedule stays the same, and they remain in a calm controlled environment they can be calm and to an outsider, they would appear to be quite normal. There are exceptions to that scenario, but for the most part, this type of environment works well.
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You have a lot of knowledge on this subject then. I've been following a case where the murderer suffered from a mental illness, was sent to a state hospital for up to three years, got stabilized on his meds, and is now facing a death penalty trial. His crimes seemed much more organized and premeditated though.
Are you saying Sarra may not ever be able to be deemed stabilized to face trial?

I agree with your opinion about the type of care we could provide to the serious mentally ill, but why can't more get that kind of safety and care before they commit a horrible crime? Why wasn't Sarra in a setting like you described? Is the problem insurance coverage and financial concerns, or legalities to keep them in a facility, or medical decisions that leave a mentally ill person falling through the cracks?

Wondering if you have an opinion in general on Laura's Law.
http://www.kpbs.org/news/2016/apr/04/san-diego-county-launches-lauras-law/
 
Most of the time when people like Sara have a supportive family, they are allowed to be in a home setting. Depending on the person, some do better at home with their families. In Sara's case, her family should have been either more involved, or there needed to be more communication between Mari and the boyfriend, especially when the boyfriend noticed she was becoming dangerous. I can't help but believe this could have been avoided if somebody had got her to the doc when she drowned the dog. Either she wasn't taking her meds, or they weren't working well for her.
Not knowing the people, it's hard to say if they had made the right decision in allowing her to stay home. I imagine having a child had alot to do with that. I feel like the boyfriend dropped the ball on this one. I haven't heard that they were living together, but if so, he might have thought everything would be OK with him being there.
For the most part, the majority of these people are in homes similar to the one I described, but there are those who either are smart enough to fool family members, and everybody is dumb struck when tragedy strikes. And too, there are plenty of mentally ill people who will leave home, and family can't find them. Then a tragedy strikes.
The way I am reading this story, I have doubts she will ever stand trial. I will certainly be surprised if she will ever be considered well enough to stand trial. In both Kan. and Okla. where I have worked, if a person needs to be institutionalized, and they don't have insurance, they are evaluated for disability, and when approved, that check will go to the care center, and the person will also put on Medicaid to pay for health care and meds.
I will read the articles on Laura's law, as I'm not familiar with it, and then post my opinion. Hope this helps!
 
The article didn't go into much detail, but it sounds like a step in the right direction. If somebody receives this kind of help, hopefully the doc can give the family the direction to get this person on disability if the doc feels like the pt is unable to hold down a job and care for themselves. A person receiving disability R/T mental illness, then it becomes easier for the person to be placed in a facility without their consent if the doc and family decide the pt can no longer function in society. Also, if the person suffers with a learning disability as well, they are eligible for disability and can be institutionalized without their consent. Usually people with learning disabilities also benefit from a structured environment.
 
All this was going on just this year, and it came to such a sad ending for Mari. I think the child's father couldn't do anything more but try to have that protection order in place and keep her away from him and the son. It's obvious Sarra already showed signs of becoming dangerous, but I guess Mari might have thought she was improving and keeping on her meds?

http://www.newsday.com/news/region-...repeatedly-stabbed-killed-docs-say-1.12088031

Sarra Gilbert has a criminal record, according to court documents. She was charged with second-degree criminal contempt after her child’s father, Emmanuel Martinez, reported to police April 28 that Gilbert had violated a temporary order of protection that ordered her to stay away from him and their 7-year-old son, according to Ellenville Village Court records.

Sarra Gilbert called Martinez, 27, on his cellphone and said: “It’s your baby’s momma,” according to the document.
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She was also charged in February with aggravated animal cruelty and endangering the welfare of a child, according to the Ellenville Village court clerk.
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John Ray, who has long served as the Gilbert family attorney related to Shannan Gilbert’s slaying.....

(said about Mari)
She was a noble person; she was really a great mother,” Ray said. “She stood by her children in thick and thin. She had a really difficult background situation in her life. She’s a single mother trying to raise all these kids, extremely poor, poverty-stricken woman who always went to work, and always supported her children.”
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She either had the wool pulled over Mari's eyes, or mom could have just subconsciously chose not to see it. And I definitely believe there was a lack of communication between Mari and the others who were a part of Sarra's life. Hearing about the arrest in Feb., I think the doc should have been notified immediately! And the ex needs his head examined for allowing his son to be with Sarra unsupervised.
 
This is just too horrifying. I recall seeing Mari and at least one of Shannan's sisters on 48 Hours or a similar show about the Long Island cases. A younger sister at one point was taunted by phone calls from someone claiming to have killed Shannan and offering hideous detail. I don't recall that sister's name. This poor, poor family. It is heartbreaking.
 
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