Mother Pleads Guilty to Trying to Kill Herself and Autistic Daughter

Kelli Stapleton, the mother, did wrong. Kelli Stapleton deserves jail time. That's the conclusion I've reached after taking a look at this story.

[P]olice said she drove daughter Isabelle to an isolated spot, gave her sleep-inducing medication and ignited charcoal in two grills inside a van, intending to kill both of them.

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But...

I'm torn nonetheless. What she went through doesn't compare to her daughter's problems, but she went through terrible things all the same.

Kelli Stapleton was an advocate for autism awareness and kept a blog, "The Status Woe," that updated readers about the challenges of finding and affording proper treatment for Isabelle, who was prone to violent outbursts.

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She chronicled her life with an autistic daughter, and I recognize the blog name, though I never knew her name.

The story above includes quotes from Carole Lieberman, a forensic psychiatrist from Beverly Hills, California. While the state intended to dispute her insanity, Ms Lieberman asserts:

he had diagnosed Stapleton with several mental illnesses, including post-traumatic stress disorder brought on by years of psychological wear and physical attacks, including two occasions when her daughter knocked her unconscious.

"Kelli has been living in a war zone," Lieberman said. "Really, it's the culmination of 13 years of having doors slammed in her face and not getting help."

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The prosecution intends to advocate the maximum penalty: Life (the story doesn't clarify if parole is an option). Ms Lieberman intends to testify in favor of a more lenient sentence.

I can't figure out where I stand on that. She deserves to be held accountable for what she did. But to what extent? The rest of her life (even if with parole)? Something less?

Her daughter, Isabelle, is not to blame here. Yet I don't doubt Kelli's suffering, either.

I don't know the right answer here, except to say that it's a tragedy for everyone involved.