Eileen and Andrea Yates

Andrea Yates as she appeared some time before the murders (left, date unknown) and soon after the murders in 2001 (right)

Eileen Starbranch

I was sitting in my house in Louisville and looked up to the TV to see Eileen Starbranch on the screen. She is a psychiatrist I worked with in Houston at 2 different hospitals. I always admired her work and her demeanor and when I realized one night that I could not take another step forward, I called her to say so. She met me in the rain, in the dark on the night before Thanksgiving and helped me get admitted to a psych hospital in another town under an assumed name. I had overdosed for some time on alcohol and was having a rather severe mixed episode of substance induced bipolar d/o. When Andrea Yates killed her children, it was due to a tragically fulfilled prediction of Eileen's. Eileen was one of the MDs who had treated Yates for psychosis.

"In Andrea's first posthospital visit, Starbranch told her that even though she was feeling better she should "remain compliant with [her] medications." In the past Andrea often took half doses or skipped her medication altogether. Depending on drugs made her "feel like she's weak," she told her PHP therapy group. By the next visit, August 16, 1999, Starbranch reported in disbelief that Andrea "is talking of wanting off medications!" She "wants to get p.g. [pregnant] and have more kids. Wants to homeschool the children." On August 18 Starbranch wrote, "Apparently patient and husband plan to have as many babies as nature will allow! This will surely guarantee future psychotic depression." Read here Read more: http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/Andrea-Yates-A-Cry-in-the-Dark/4#ixzz2UHIsADJB

Eileen Starbranch

Andrea Yates

"A psychiatrist, who treated Andrea Yates in 1999 after she attempted suicide twice following the birth of her fourth child, testified in her murder trial this week that she warned Yates not to have another child because it might prompt another psychotic episode. Dr. Eileen Starbranch told jurors that Yates suffered from postpartum psychosis and was out of touch with reality.


"I could pretty much predict that Mrs. Yates would have another episode of psychosis," Dr. Starbranch told jurors. She said postpartum psychosis caused Yates to have delusions and lose touch with reality -- a more severe form of postpartum depression.The psychiatrist treated Yates in June 1999 after she overdosed on sleeping pills. She said had scratched a bald spot on her head, had filthy hair and could not function.Several psychiatrists who saw Yates in treatment testified last week. Several of them described how Yates would not answer questions, could not eat or sleep, paced up and down the house constantly, and stopped tending to her hygiene in the months leading up to the drownings.

Sickest I've Ever Seen"She was one of the sickest people I've ever seen, and I think she was suffering from some sort of mental disturbance for quite a while," Dr. Ellen Allbritton told the jury. "I was profoundly affected by how sick she was when I saw her."
Yates' defense attorneys must convince the jury that she did not know her conduct was wrong at that time she drowned her five children, because of a severe mental disease or defect before the jury can find her not guilty by reason of insanity."   From Andrea Yates Warned Not to Have 5th Child

By Charles Montaldo, About.com Guide July 9, 2006 retrieved 9/16/12, 

http://crime.about.com/b/2006/07/09/andrea-yates-warned-not-to-have-5th-child.htm

Education and Achievements:

Andrea (Kennedy) Yates was born on July 2, 1964 in Houston, Tex. She graduated from Milby High School in Houston in 1982. She was the class valedictorian, captain of the swim team and an officer in the National Honor Society. She completed a two-year pre-nursing program at the University of Houston and then graduated in 1986 from the University of Texas School of Nursing in Houston. She worked as a registered nurse at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center from 1986 until 1994.
Do You Know a Psychopath?

Andrea Meets Rusty Yates:

Andrea and Rusty Yates, both 25, met at their apartment complex in Houston. Andrea, who was usually reserved, initiated the conversation. Andrea had never dated anyone until she turned 23 and prior to meeting Rusty she was healing from a broken relationship. They eventually moved in together and spent much of their time involved in religious study and prayer. They were married on April 17, 1993. They shared with their guests that they planned on having as many children as nature provided.

Andrea Called Herself "Fertile Myrtle":

In their eight years of marriage, the Yates had five children; four boys and one girl. Andrea stopped jogging and swimming when she became pregnant with her second child. Friends say that she became reclusive. The decision to home-school the children seemed to feed her isolation.
The Yates Children:
Feb. 26, 1994 – Noah Yates, Dec. 12, 1995 - John Yates, Sept. 13, 1997 - Paul Yates, Feb. 15, 1999 - Luke Yates, and on Nov. 30, 2000 - Mary Yates was the last child to be born.

Their Living Conditions:

Rusty accepted work in Florida in 1996 and the family moved into a 38-foot travel trailer in Seminole, FL While in Florida, Andrea got pregnant, but miscarried. In 1997 they returned to Houston and lived in their trailer because Rusty wanted to "live light." The next year. Rusty decided to purchase a 350-square-foot, renovated bus which became their permanent home. Luke was born bringing the number of children to four. Living conditions were cramped and Andrea's insanity began to surface.

Michael Woroniecki:

Michael Woroniecki was a traveling minister from whom Rusty purchased their bus and whose religious views had influenced both Rusty and Andrea. Rusty only agreed with some of Woroniecki's ideas but Andrea embraced the extremist sermons. He preached, "the role of women is derived from the sin of Eve and that bad mothers who are going to hell create bad children who will go to hell." Andrea was so totally captivated by Woroniecki that Rusty and Andrea's family grew concerned.

Andrea’s First Suicide Attempt :

On June 16 1999, Andrea called Rusty and begged him to come home. He found her shaking involuntarily and chewing on her fingers. The next day, she was hospitalized after she tried to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills. She was transferred to the Methodist Hospital psychiatric unit and diagnosed with a major depressive disorder. The medical staff described Andrea as evasive in discussing her problems. However, on June 24 she was prescribed an antidepressant and released.

Spiraling Downward:

Once home, Andrea did not take the medication and as a result she began to self mutilate and refused to feed her children because she felt they were eating too much. She thought there were video cameras in the ceilings and said that the characters on television were talking to her and the children. She told Rusty about the hallucinations, yet neither of them informed Andrea's psychiatrist, Dr. Starbranch. On July 20, Andrea put a knife to her neck and begged her husband to let her die.

Warned About the Risks of Having More Babies :

Andrea was again hospitalized and stayed in a catatonic state for 10 days. After being treated with an injection of different drugs that included Haldol, an anti-psychotic drug, her condition immediately improved. Rusty was optimistic about the drug therapy because Andrea appeared more like the person he first met. Dr. Starbranch warned the Yates that having another baby might bring on more episodes of psychotic behavior. Andrea was placed on out-patient care and prescribed Haldol.

New Hopes for the Future :

Andrea's family urged Rusty to buy a home instead of returning Andrea to the cramped space of the bus. He purchased a nice home in a peaceful neighborhood. Once in her new home, Andrea's condition improved to the point that she returned to past activities like swimming, cooking and some socializing. She was also interacting well with her children. She expressed to Rusty that she had strong hopes for the future but still viewed her life on the bus as her failure.

The Tragic End:

In March of 2000, Andrea, on Rusty's urging, became pregnant and stopped taking the Haldol. On November 30, 2000, Mary was born. Andrea was coping but on March 12, her father died and immediately her mental state digressed. She stopped talking, refused liquids, mutilated herself, and would not feed Mary. She also frantically read the Bible.By the end of March Andrea returned to a different hospital. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Mohammed Saeed, treated her briefly with Haldol but discontinued it, saying that she did not did not seem psychotic. Andrea was released only to return again in May. She was released in 10 days and in her last follow-up visit with Saeed, she was told to think positive thoughts and to see a psychologist.

Two days later, Rusty left for work and before his mother arrived to help, Andrea began to put into action the thoughts that had consumed her for two years.
Andrea filled the tub with water and beginning with Paul, she systematically drowned the three youngest boys, then placed them on her bed and covered them. Mary was left floating in the tub. The last child alive was the first born, seven-year-old Noah. He asked his mother what was wrong with Mary, then turned and ran away. Andrea caught up with him and as he screamed, she dragged him and forced him into the tub next to Mary's floating body. He fought desperately, coming up for air twice, but Andrea held him down until he was dead. Leaving Noah in the tub, she brought Mary to the bed and laid her in the arms of her brothers. During Andrea's confession she explained her actions by saying that she wasn't a good mother and that the children were "not developing correctly" and she needed to be punished. Her controversial trial lasted three weeks. The jury found Andrea guilty of capital murder, but rather then recommending the death penalty, they voted for life in prison. At the age of 77, in the year 2041, Andrea will be eligible for parole."

Profile of Andrea Yates

By Charles Montaldo, About.com Guide at http://crime.about.com/od/current/p/andreayates.htm retrieved 9/16/12

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teen suicide, clearlake

one of six at sixteen, song and video about the clearlake suicide epidemic.

Nancy Grace stirring the pot over hearing about the hospitalization of Yates at Rusk (Welner had been a treating MD :

"BETH KARAS, COURT TV NEWS CORRESPONDENT: She was back in court to be committed to a state hospital, but she did not leave Houston until today to take the 450-mile trek by vehicle across the state to North Texas State Hospital in Vernon, Texas. She`s going to be there for a month being assessed, and she`ll be back -- well, I don`t even know if she has to be in court, but her attorneys will be back in court in a month, a month from the verdict in the case. And the judge will determine if she stays there at the maximum security hospital or goes to a place like Rusk with all of those amenities that you just showed. GRACE: Yes, you know, the thing about Rusk, Beth, they have dances, movies, bingo tournaments, daytrips to Wal-Mart, ping-pong, you name it, board games. It sounds like you`re on a cruise, Beth. KARAS: Well, there is a lot of therapy, and it is a much more lenient... GRACE: Therapy, ping-pong therapy? KARAS: There is therapy, but her emphasis will be on therapy when she is in Vernon, Texas. Deanna Laney continues to be in Vernon, Texas, another mother found not guilty by reason of insanity for killing two of her children with a rock, saying God told her to do it. It is possible that Andrea Yates will stay in this maximum security facility for some time. She will not have the kind of permissive environment that you`re describing. GRACE: But even, even here, if she doesn`t go to Rusk, wait, they want her to go to Rusk. She`s in Vernon. But even in Vernon, it`s not like lock down. There are three to five patients in each bedroom. They have free access. They`re not locked into a common area. They have television. There is recreation. The bedrooms are not locked. It`s set up like a wheel with spokes. KARAS: Right. GRACE: We`re showing you pictures of where Andrea Yates -- I bet her children would really have loved to go to that little animal petting farm we`re showing right there, but they`re not going to. They`re in Heaven tonight, Beth. KARAS: Nancy, she was found not guilty. She`s not an inmate in a prison. We have to remember that. I know that you may feel that she should be incarcerated. I know you think she should be incarcerated, but she`s not an inmate. She`s in a hospital. GRACE: Yes, I know she`s in a hospital, Beth. And when they have her medicated to where they believe she is stabilized, there is nothing to stop a judge from letting her walk out. Is that correct, Dr. Welner? WELNER: Absolutely. I would tell you, just from my own professional experience in examining people who`ve been found not guilty by reason of insanity, that I spent 14 hours with her May 3rd and 4th. I would tell you right now she`s not a danger to anybody. I`ll tell you something else: She showed no sign of unstable psychiatric illness that could not be managed to the community. And if she were another inmate in New York under certain circumstances, the majority of my colleagues would say, "Now send her out into the community." GRACE: OK. Get ready, everybody. Have you ever heard of a makeover, when you go and you get your hair highlighted, and trimmed, and your nails done, and your makeup redone? You may not think that goes in a sentence with Andrea Yates. You`re wrong -- Doctor? WELNER: Well, certainly, you know, there are a variety of services that are provided to... GRACE: She was having a makeover. WELNER: She was. She did have... GRACE: When? WELNER: Well, she had a makeover, and a hair, nails, and all of that done right around the time of the anniversary of her children`s birthdays. GRACE: Repeat. WELNER: She was provided with a makeover, among other things, which she appreciated, enjoyed around the time... GRACE: Ms. Kelley, you`re still with us, the Yates` juror. KELLEY: Yes, I am. GRACE: Did you hear that? Did you hear she`s having a makeover? KELLEY: Do I approve of her having a makeover? GRACE: No, I just wanted to know if the jurors had any idea how she - - how her -- let me say "incarceration" would work, makeovers, bingo, free daytrips to Wal-Mart, dance therapy, coed dining. Did you have any idea that that would be the outcome after all five children were held underwater? KELLEY: No. We was not given that information. GRACE: Why not, Steve Greenberg? Why hide it from the jury, Steve Greenberg? GREENBERG: Well, because it`s not up to the jury to decide the punishment. The jury is to listen to the facts and they`re supposed to decide if she, in fact, committed these killings in cold blood and knew what she was doing was wrong or didn`t appreciate what she was doing was wrong. They`re not supposed to get caught up in what`s going to happen to her in the future."