Familicide attempt: case report of a forensic psychiatric evaluation

Abstract

Homicides followed by the offender’s suicide are rare, and their prevalence ranges from 1% to 1.5% in the United States and in the United Kingdom. There are not prevalence studies of this kind in Brazil. Such type of violence may occur in intimate partner homicide (uxoricide), children homicide (filicide), or multiple family members’ homicide (familicide). Killing spouse and children is the most common form of familicide, which has steadily grown in the United States. In order to analyze these types of crimes researchers frequently turn to newspapers, or assess survivors’ files in forensic psychiatric hospitals.