She looks like a monster. No murder is excusable unless it's pure defense. 15 is young, but well aware from right and wrong. Don't ever let this girl out.

Literally the only reason she shouldn't be put to death is because she was a teen.

What a waste of two lives.

This is SO scary. What is wrong with this little girl? You just don't wake up and want to kill for the thrill.

What happened in her life to become a MURDERER? Little girl.....Was it worth it? I think NOT. So TRAGIC

Needs MUCH psychiatric help. Look into her eyes and you can almost see her mental sickness in her eyes.

Anybody notice the quote "I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them now they're dead", coupled with her digging TWO graves ?

...wonder who was the second target.

so sad how two young lives are now over.

I do wonder how you can be so pure evil at 15 yrs old? She should never be free. I do wish her the best in prison, it won't be an easy life for her.

While I do NOT agree with the death penalty, they should NOT have given her life with the possibility of parole. For her to have committed a crime like this at 15..... you know she is totally evil and will NEVER change. You cannot rehabilitate, medicate or anything else someone who is a sociopath, if they allow her out she WILL only cause more suffering and deaths.

Jeff-573598... Yes, I noticed that and it sent even more shivers down my spine.

15 years old is no excuse. They should kill this piece of garbage.

Blondeness, I agree, death penalty is a no go (enough death already) and parole should be off the table. She should spend the rest of her life thinking about why she is where she is. That is real punishment.

This girl is pure evil. The world would be safer without her walking and breathing. If there was ever a case for the Death Penalty, this would be an appropriate use. The tax payers would not have to pay the bills and the world would be safer..

I believe she literally got away with murder!

Jeff, yea I noticed that too. When it said "their" and she dug "two" graves. I wonder if there is another victim out there somewhere?

Seriously, this girl should never be let out of prison!

Fire up old sparky.

Good God; these animals actually exists.

I know that some are against the death penalty, got it...but would you feel the same way if someone in your family was murdered? I dont think so. Some may argue (because they like to argue) that they would forgive and feel okay for the murderer to rot in jail forever but that is an outward lie....to protect the inward desire to see the monster fry for what they had done.

This girl should be placed in an oven and have the burners lit. That way she can feel what hell is going to be like before she gets there.

I think the use of the them, their pronoun is just her way of trying to remove the human from the situation. If you kill someTHING, you can justify in your sick mind as not killing someONE.

It's sad it's not PC to decide this girl ought to be strangled, cut, and stabbed to death in return. (after all, she wanted to know what it's like.) Ugh.

I wonder if there is another victim that hasn't been found yet. Or maybe more. She said "Now they're dead" not they are going to be dead.

That is one scary child. Perhaps the most frightening part is that she is likely to be released someday back into the population of potential victims. Why would a judge think she deserves a possibility of getting a second chance to kill again?

At the very least a Psychiatric Hospital for the rest of her life. There's a short circuit in that girls brain. I agree with Jeff, you can see it in her eyes.

she dug 2 graves-fact

enter the darkside; the animal within, or should i say, the monster one can become..be smart; don't even think about it or go there.....

I do not gloat over her sentence (they were too lenient with her in my opinion) but maybe her evil curiosity abt. how it "feels" to kill someone will be addressed in prison. I don't hope that someone kills her in prison, but I believe she will know how it "feels" to be scrutinized, threatenend and to have the anxiety of knowing that someone might be wanting to know how it "feels" to kill her. That is part of the torment of being incarcerated with a society of people who are just as evil as she could ever imagine.

She reminds me a lot of the ex. I wonder if they aren't kin.

Bye.

This is when the Sharia Law that Muslims practice would come in handy.. This monster doesnt deserve to be in jail, she deserves to be dead.. someone needs to slit her throat or something much worse... Jail time for her is like a party.. she gets food, gets a bed to sleep on and gets to work out.. While this little girl was murdered.. Omfg i want to freaking strangle her..

catjmj is correct, she used "them" and "their" because she did not mention who she killed or their gender in her diary, she only mentioned that she had killed someone. The grammatically correct way to reference a person with an unknown gender is "him or her", but the girl was only 15, so most people would use them or their.

I agree she should have gotten the death penalty. And that's not to say I take the death penalty issue lightly.. I do think some states and in some cases they are overeager to use it. But this girl is derranged and there is no coming back from her mental illness. Her curiosity and enjoyment alone are clear signs of a serial killer. The death penalty is made for cases such as this.

The average cost for an inmate is $65 a day. I can think of a lot better charitable and economical uses for that taxpayer money than providing a life for someone who so quickly took the life of an innocent 9 year old girl.

Cold Calculating Killer............!!!

Took one life and destroyed two families in the process!!

She should never view the light of day from outside bars and wire ever again!!!

I can only hope she has a roomy that is 6'3" about 250!!!

Prozac my ass!!!

Truth is putting a kid in jail for life is inhumane, and unfair to both families. It would allow all involved a better long term life, if she were simply executed! (Likely even the girl) 15 is immature, but to write that you enjoy murder, there is no way back from that, and in any case retribution is in order, but life in prison is silly, unless DNA can eventually get you free, but in her case she confessed. Just execute her)

I have three beautiful girls --- 1, 6 and 12 --- and a 15 year old son. If anyone EVER did that to one of my kids, the one spending the rest of their life in prison would be ME!!! How could any judge entertain the idea of a plea bargain? Did that poor little 9-year old angel get a chance to bargain for her life from this MONSTER??? Throw this kid in a dark cell and let her rot! I suppose her mommy and daddy are upset for the "loss" of their daughter. What about the parents who really lost a child?

Our justice system worked for a change.

I think lawyers who defend people like this with their twisted defense that the girl was on prozac and depressed as though that is a legitmate reason to kill someone should rethink being an attorney. Unfortunately attorneys in this country worship money and have forgotten how to do the right thing.

She wanted to know how it feels to kill someone...maybe she needs to know how it feels to be killed

Blondeness, your Blondeness amazes me. You don't support the Death Penalty for anyone but 15 yr old girls? I believe ,as a person who has cared for mentally ill teens who thought like this girl the death penalty is the only answer.

Peter, this monster will never spend one second, hell one nano second thinking about Elizabeth except to blame her for getting found. Yes, Alyssa has aready fixed in her mind how it was all Elizabeth's fault she had to kill her. Scary damn world.

Eye for an eye! Let the family of that poor little girl torture her to death in front of all the cons. Where is the justice that we, the american people, have to support this sick piece of trash untill a judge kicks her out for overcrowding, and she kills again? UN-FRICKEN REAL!

Maybe she was going to go after her little sister next. I have no sympathy for this little bwitch.

"I am so sorry for what I did" yet "it felt pretty good"....the news gets harder and harder to read. I hope she lives a long long long life in a stark cell. There is no such thing as rehabilitation for someone like this and I don't care if she is a teenage "person"...I had trouble typing anything related to human or person. I'm deeply sorry for this poor young child's parents and I don't even want to think about the horrible death that child suffered yet we should as I'm not so certain how it could possibly be explained from any sort of pulpit of God.

Jeff, I too read that entry and wondered about the 'second' person. I only hope the police have checked into that reference and found there was no second victim. If they haven't, they should. This person was capable of one horrible death we know about...the fact that she uses plurals and past tenses in writing about 'them' ("their") deaths and graves, I cannot help but think there may be another victim out there somewhere.

And should there be another...NO plea deal...NO deals at all...If the justice system of her state doesn't want to put to death a 'teenager', then life in prison without possibility of parole.

Finally...prayers and sorrow for both the little nine year old and her family and friends.

I'll make this short although I could go on for hours. This "person" does not deserve a life, let alone a life in prison with the possibility of parole when she so easily chose death for her unsuspecting victim. You can't fix a broken person such as this. Please do me a favor and and put her down in the most cost effective way as I don't want to be the next victim once she is released when she forgets how it feels to kill a person. Seriously?!

Needs MUCH psychiatric help. Look into her eyes and you can almost see her mental sickness in her eyes.

Peter I thought the same thing. I bet anything that in a few years she will get a schizophrenia diagnosis. It's just too early to see yet.

I feel for the child's parents. They know what their child suffered through with this pycho.

It amazes me how many people just ignore problems with their kids. There had to be signs that Alyssa was disturbed and not just depressed.

some1 do that bitch a favor and kill her the same way

I hope that, as long as that young girl's mother is alive, she shows up every time she's up for parole, and reminds the parole board of this monster's idea of a "thrill."

Toss her in an underground grave, and throw away the key and let her starve to death--that'd be a pretty ugly way to die.

PS. I too wonder who the second target was--her younger sister?

Well, she hasn't been diagnosed with schizophrenia yet and prozac would hardly be any sort of excuse. The side effects are not strangulation and slitting of throats. I wouldn't be judging the parents either particularly unless light had been shed on what went on behind the scenes. "seeing mental sickness in somebody's eyes" does not serve as any sort of valid diagnosis of anything. If she was on prozac, I would assume a problem already had been identified and she had already been receiving some sort of medical treatment (who gave her the prozac might be a good question and how was she being treated as she was taking this medication...what sort of therapy? who is the doctor in this case? As prozac isn't exactly a street drug. Teenagers (and most certainly disturbed ones)...act with intent. She didn't seem to be blither blathering and hallucinating. She was lucid...stated that she knew what she was doing and she enjoyed it.

Pilot1 - I'm from St. Louis, Missouri and not everyone here is a "hillbilly". Hillbillies, to my knowledge, don't go around killing people for the thrill of it. In fact, they probably believe in the "eye for an eye" justice that many on this board profess to. Stereotyping does not explain why this girl did this - she suffered a lot of mental problems and her family life was not the best. She lived with her grandmother, who was aware of her mental and family problems. Many people suffer from mental problems and come from broken homes. It's not just a "hillbilly" thing. The grandmother could not have predicted that Alyssa would just go out and kill someone for the "thrill" of it.

Alyssa had her younger sister lure Elizabeth Olten (the victim) to go and play with them in the woods. Whether the younger sister was meant to be the 2nd victim or whether she even witnessed the killing, I don't know. It looks like there may have been a 2nd victim-in-waiting. It's a good thing that she was caught, as we'll never know how many other victims there could have been.

She is a scary, violent, young girl and should be kept in prison, no parole, even if she finds Jesus. We know what she did after she killed Elizabeth - she went to church. She will be in her own private hell there to think about the consequences of killing someone, hopefully, for the rest of her life. I don't see her becoming rehabilitated at all. She is not truly sorry, just sorry she was caught.

I feel bad for the Olten family and hope they will feel less pain in the future knowing that this girl will not hurt someone they love again. Rest in peace, Elizabeth.

No death penalty because the US Supreme Court already said so. Comes from Roper v Simmons, where a boy just shy of his 18th birthday killed a woman by duct-taping her and pushing her off a bridge into a river to drown. He was sentenced to death, committed the crime two months before his 18th birthday. Supremes, in their infinite wisdom, said no "child" under the age of 18 should face the death penalty. I don't think she should have a chance at parole, but then, I have represented three murderers who, thirty years after their sentencing, probably would be model citizens, and I believe should have a chance to make their case for parole. They won't get that chance, my state denies parole for certain convictions, even if the person can show they are rehabilitated. And yes, some criminals can be rehabilitated, even some who commit murder.

You have got to be kidding. her Mother should go thru that, life without parole? unreal. Feed and clothe her for the possibly next 55 years. NO way. Hanging or firing squad is what should happen to her. I do not care what their reasons were for taking someones life, if you kill another person then you forfeit your own,period. Unless it is to self defense. Let her comfess her sins to God and then send her to him for judgement.

This may sound awful, but I hope she gets what coming to her in jail. Maybe someone wants to know how it feels to be judge jury and executioner.

I don't really care for the death penalty but I also don't like seeing my tax money being used for the upkeep of people such as this

And........why the f*ck is this little bytch still breathing?????

She should have been taken out to the backyard outside the courtroom and shot on the spot.

Literally the only reason she shouldn't be put to death is because she was a teen.

Baloney. She knew EXACTLY what she was doing. Incapable of comprehending her actions ms a$$.

1.37 Eye for an eye! Let the family of that poor little girl torture her to death in front of all the cons.

So... you would turn the victim's family into monsters for the sake of revenge?

When is enough killing good enough?

People don't seem to understand that the death penalty costs more than life in prison. Federal appeals costs are monumental and so are deathe row costs . Please don't say no appeals, shot them immediately, etc. We are talking about what is, not what you think should be.

The death penalty is not the answer. To Disabled Vet: I've had a relative killed by a drunk driver (no comparison to this horrible murder!) so I do know what it's like to have someone taken away. I did not and still do not wish the death penalty upon that person. I'd rather they suffer behind bars for many, many years. Sadly, drunk driving laws back then (some 30 years ago) weren't like what they are now and that scum has gone on with his life and freedom for a long time.

I believe many studies have been done that prove it costs tax payers less to support someone in prison for life with 3 squares, medical attention, etc. than it does to see the process through to execution what with nearly endless appeals, etc., over many years.

What I think is sad is that the plea deal makes it possible for this girl to get paroled at some point in the future. To the family of the deceased little girl, that cannot ever happen and would not be fair or just.

And, for those who enjoy jumping on this board to hate and find facts contrary to facts presented by others, my purpose in posting is not to hate. So, don't hate back. 2 families, but especially the family of the little girl, have had their lives ruined forever. Nothing can make that right.

I think that her lack of remorse should be reflected in her punishment. Therefore, KILL HER.

What a waste of an innocent life....now we are going to waste the tax payers money keeping her alive in prison. Sick.

What is wrong with this little girl?

Read Dr. Peter Breggin's book, "Talking Back to Prozac". There have been MANY cases of violence in which Prozac was involved. The drug companies do all in their power to destroy the SSRI defense for obvious reasons. My son was on that garbage at 14 and I had to lock up the knives after he tried to stab his older brother. SSRI's are horrible drugs and are no more effective than the older antidepressants, which were supposedly bad because they gave you a dry mouth, but the SSRIs just cause violence, suicide, and destroy your sex life for as long as you're on them. (The first two are relatively rare; the last one is not.)

A 15 year old is a child and shouldn't be charged as an adult under any cirumstances. (In PA, they actually charged a TWELVE YEAR OLD as an adult but it was eventually reversed.) OTOH, I don't think kids guilty of serious crimes should go free at 18 either. There was to be some other way, perhaps the ability to hold them in a juvenile facility to 21 or so while getting intense treatment which I believe is the case in some states.

I'm aware of the cost difference between life in prison and the cost of repeated appeals to escape the death penalty. It just doesn't seem right that these people get 3 square a day, a place to sleep, and are creature comforts (gym, tv, entertainment) without paying for it. It's on our, the working class's, dime. That's night right either. It's like they are being rewarded for their acts against society.

While I do NOT agree with the death penalty, they should NOT have given her life with the possibility of parole. For her to have committed a crime like this at 15..... you know she is totally evil and will NEVER change. You cannot rehabilitate, medicate or anything else someone who is a sociopath, if they allow her out she WILL only cause more suffering and deaths.

She committed the crime as a CHILD of fifteen!!! Civilized societies treat juvenile offenders differently fromo adults. YOU are certainly not in a position to "diagnose" someone as a sociopath based on reading a short article on the Internet. Depending on her actual problem, she could very well be rehabilitated. It shouldn't take 3 years to try a 15 year old, BTW, but this is what happens when they insist on charging children as adults. They lost precious time when she could have been appropriately medicated with antipsychotics and given therapy.

Justathought- you spend enough time with mentally ill people you will be able to notice it. It's something missing in the eyes. I don't know how to explain it. Rarely is schizophrenia diagnosed that early. The person usually starts out with bi-polar or similar diagnosis. Schizophrenia onset usually is seen in early adulthood. That is why I said later. It has been my experience working in the mental health field that parents do not want to see what problems their child has. They see it as a failure on their part. They blame the school for thier kids behavior or the other kids. I doubt very seriously that her parents ever thought it was possible for her to do this. If she was on Prozac, then she needed to be in counseling. If she was in counseling, I can't see her therapist missing this if Alyssa had a good relationship with them. I know that is a lot of IF's. People just don't wake up one day and turn off their humanity and empathy toward others. There were signs, but they are always clearer when seen from behind.

To the family of the deceased little girl, that cannot ever happen and would not be fair or just.

Do you know the little girl's family personally that you presume to speak for them?

Um Bundgaard? What are you talking about? Probably the biggest red herring in the world. How did you get from a fifteen year old slaughtering a nine year old, to George Bush? Do you live your life in perpetual simile where Bush is your comparison to whatever you can find? How does that work exactly? Totally pointless comment, with zero value added.

Yeah, she said "them" and she dug two graves, so a few people are wondering "if there's a second victim out there somewhere." Yes! They should check the second grave to see if someone is in there!

Also, Disabled_Vet-2153438, I don't know how I would react to something this. You certainly do not. If I had to guess, however, I think the sense of grief would just swallow me up. No amount of vengeance could possibly fix the hole in my life and in my heart, so I doubt I would move past that.

Rarely is schizophrenia diagnosed that early. The person usually starts out with bi-polar or similar diagnosis. Schizophrenia onset usually is seen in early adulthood. That is why I said later.

Actually, if they suspect early onset schizophrenia in a young teenager they will typically give a diagnosis like "Psychotic Disorder, NOS" which stands for "not otherwise specified." I know this because I have such a son, who is 15. They've admitted to me that it will probably progress into schizophrenia if it isn't already. They just don't want to give such a devastating label on a minor. They gave him SSRI's in the past at it had horrible, horrible effects. That's why I can see how Prozac could easily have contributed to this girl's actions. Remember, this is a medication that is prescribed by a doctor and that kids are usually forced to take. It's not like she went out and took PCP or meth before the murder. Doesn't anyone here have any compassion?

Schizophrenia is most often diagnosed in early adulthood, but it can actually manifest itself at any age, including childhood and middle age.

I do agree she should never be let out and the only victims in all this is her parents and the parents that lost their daughter. They should have caught her behavior earlier. @ Julie you are right and she does need heavy counseling and I think killing someone is not the way to to cry for help. Does she know what she did that was very wrong? She really should spend life in a mental hospital. I read an article that stated those that are in jail do not receive the medical and psychological attention that they really. and it is likely this young lady won't get it.

i feel sorry for the little girl she killed and her parents.i can only imagine their grief.a life sentence for her killer is going to be small solace.for those of you that havent been to prison its a nightmare.life in that hell is what she deserves.for the judge....we appreciate seeing some justice.thanks

OomYaaqub: "To the family of the little girl..." I wasn't speaking for them, but rather - in a sense - to them.

You - and everyone on here - are entitled to your opinion. You can express your opinion without denigrating that of others.

15 or not, she should never see the light of day again. Disgusting.

Some monsters are just born. Why did she even get the possibility of parole? She did it for fun to see how it felt and said it felt rather enjoyable? Why on earth would you let this one see the outside ever?

Disabled_Vet... your statement of how families should react is misguided. Not everyone is out for blood. How do I know? Well the fact that I lost a family member who was 14 at the time (shot and killed) might give me some insight into this. By the way, we invited the guy to the funeral. He could see what he did to a family. He apologized and broke down. This is something he has to live with for the rest of his life. That was enough for us.

Keep on being bitter about things though, it will only bring you down

And yes, some criminals can be rehabilitated, even some who commit murder.

Perhaps Jon, but to my knowledge...not a sociopath. From what I understand there is no cure and no medication that can instill empathy. This girl clearly demonstrated by her actions and messages postmortem that if she isn't a sociopath, she could sure as hell play one on TV.

Yet another "product" of our take a drug and feel better society. A teacher once told my wife and I that our son should see a doctor and get anti ADHD medication prescribed for him. I told her she wasn't qualified to make that determination. But, we had the doctor examine him anyway, and he told us the teacher was full of @!$%#. She just wanted a classroom full of quiet little zombies who couldn't think, act, or speak for themselves.

Being as how she was 15 at the time of the incident, I do think she should be given a second chance. But, it shouldn't come for somewhere between 5-10 years, and she should be thoroughly examined by a psychiatrist before she is released.

Someone who posted earlier in this thread has it right; what a waste of TWO lives.

I think it's funny that most people (naturally?) assume that in order to want to kill someone, and to enjoy doing it, you must be mentally ill.

I suspect there are people in our armed forces who "enjoy their job" and part of their job is "killing other people" and all they simply do is make those people "not human" in order to justify their desire to hunt them down and take them out of this world.

Sometimes - as been historically proven - on false grounds, and for reasons unjustifiable to most people...and yet, soldiers follow orders and dont question...they just do, many without remorse...without concern...without guilt.

We have no idea how many of our soldiers joined the armed forces "just to know what it was like to LEGALLY kill someone"...and I suspect, our armed forces dont really want to know that...

The ones who come home with PTSD and essentially messed up heads for life, those are the ones who couldnt shut out the reality of what they did...even if ultimately they still conclude, I did whats right.

Many police officers struggle to accept killing a person in the line of duty EVEN WHEN THEY KNOW that person had killed someone else. And then, many other officers dont struggle at all...they shrug it off, the person they killed was less than human...so no matter to them. Or maybe it's the part of their job they enjoy the most, the power to snuff someones light out they deem "bad".

I dont think it takes mental illness.

I think it takes INDIFFERENCE.

And indifference can take so many forms. This one just happened to take the form of a 15 year old girls, who creeps MOST of us out. Including me.

I wouldnt call her mentally ill, just a horrible person through and through.

Overthe1 This is when the Sharia Law that Muslims practice would come in handy..

Really? It's ok to cherry pick what you want when it suits you. Don't use another system to exact your revenge, use the one you have in place. The one you voted for.

This girl is evil and there are no other ways to look at it. There will be counseling in her future but it's up to her to accept it. She will be closely monitored the rest of her life that's for certain.

Hmmm... Yes this is a terrible waste of two lives. However, one must question the sentencing judge in this matter, because the judge allowed for the possibility of parole.

In this particular case, parole at some point might not be a very good idea. Even at the age of 15, this young lady exhibited some of the classic symptoms of a predatory psychopath. More likely than not, she will not be able to resist the urge to repeat her behavior, sometime in the future. (That is not my opinion - it is a medical fact about psychopathic behaviors.)

Jeff, who wondered about her use of the plural, "killed them." She probably killed cats, dogs, birds and other smaller animals all the time. This was not her first kill. It was her first human kill. She is a monster. We are so arrogant that we do not start to count kills until it is Homo sapiens sapiens that has been killed. You can take it to the bank that this was not her first kill and that there were many instances of pre-kill torture just because it felt good to inflict terrible suffering. A monster, she. I hope she gets retribution, physically, during her years of confinement. And I hope that some pompous psychiatrist does not down the road pronounce her rehabilitated so more of any species have to die.

The 2 graves thing makes me wonder if killing the girl was a means of mentally killing her parents or something.

No matter what, it is a very disturbing mystery that seems to point to something being very out of whack.

Actually, OomYaaqub, Prozac is the only thing that kept me from killing people when my mother was dying.

But she is mentally ill. She likes killing. Those soldiers that like killing are also mentally ill. Mental illness just means a mental shortcoming that may or may not be treatable. My cousin did what he had to in war, as do most of the people in wars. It's kill or be killed. That doesn't mean they are indifferent. The soldiers do not have to have PTSD to be scarred by war. People have an overriding want of being alive. When it comes to you or him, you kill, as in war.

Who was the second person she killed???

Lkessler, I agree with you in hoping that Elizabeth's mother makes it known every time this monster is up for parole what was done to her baby. I hope the people in the community sign petitions every time Alyssa's parole comes up.

We had a comparable incident near where I live, back in the early 1980's. Two young men murdered a 16 year old girl on her way home from a part-time job. They were also given life with the chance of parole. They go up for parole every two years. The poor mother (the father died a few years ago) has to go through hell every time. Fortunately, there are quite a large number of people that sign petitions to keep them jailed. They used to be up at the same time. This year, one of these monsters had his parole postponed. That means that since this year, the poor mother now has to fight for justice for her murdered daughter over a longer period of time. People in this community have vowed to continue to write the parole board and sign petitions every time these monsters come up to the Parole Board. I hope Elizabeth's mother will be blessed with this kind of caring community.

To the people who have said this person needs psychiatric help - you are WRONG! There are things that a psychiatrist can assist with, but this case is not one of them. Some people are born evil and nothing will change it.

She is 18, she is a full grown woman. The headline says teen gets life. Put her in general population, I hear the inmates don't like child killers.

I am not for or against the Death Penalty, but in this case there should be a public hanging or stoning that is televised so that spoiled little brats like her don't think this is ever an option. she should be made to suffer for this..Drugs, legal or not, mentally ill or not. People of America think they don't have to be held accountable for the actions anymore. Our forefather's that gave their lives for this country are rolling in their grave's...WAKE THE HELL up America!!!!!!

This goes out to all you oh it's not her fault cause she was Ill people...Tell ya what when she gets out, she can live next to you with your little girl...

It's quite possible that her use of the words "them" and "they're" doesn't necessarily refer to multiple victims, but may be an effect of her mental illness. If she has some form of schizophrenia (likely, considering her extreme instability) she may have believed she was killing two people when in fact she was only killing one. A much more likely explanation than killing two victims but only confessing to one - and still getting life. Whatever her issues are, they go far, FAR beyond depression. God only knows if an earlier intervention/correct diagnosis would have done any good - some mental problems are insurmountable. Sociopathy is one of those.

That being said, while I support the death penalty, if she is schizophrenic a nice long life behind bars alone with "the voices" would be far more punishment than executing her outright. I feel that would be justice well served in this case - there is no excuse for killing a child.

Except for the "Missouri hillbillie" comment, I find the lack of mention of the girl's race astounding.

It's odd to me that the very same people who seem quite adept at using racial epithet's and calling for the condemnation of entire races of people on one thread about one crime, seem content to use innocuous adjectives on crimes that don't involve...well, you know...

Then again, it's not THAT odd.

Have a nice day.

She is not a Monster she's a human being that is possessed..I would call for an Exorcist.

I find it astounding that no one has mentioned her sign off of the letter: "Gotta go to church now, bye!"

And, to Lusitania, how about joining the 21st century? Demonic possession was a medieval explanation for mental illness symptoms which they didn't understand.

Kay, I gotta go to church now ... lol."

I encourage everyone to contemplate this statement of hers in context of the rest of the story. It just adds a new, additionally frightening, level of duplicity to her nature. I don't think psychiatric help will work here.

America, a society based on violence and revenge, creates this from within!

You reap what you sow America!

If you think that way MikeyMike you are really not you..

She is a monster. Reminds me of that movie 'Monster' only worse.

@Travis Berg,

Yeah Travis good point. She may well have grown up to become another Lee Wornos...She certainly has a good start at it.

Is anyone else bothered that she said "I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them now they're dead," which implies more than one victom.

Three years from confession to sentencing????? Our justice system in action. Making judges, lawyers and all involved rich off taxpayers' taxes!

Ridiculous. She admitted it. Next day the sentence!

We need tort reform, judge reform, jail reform and legal reform.

She reminds me of Newt Gingrich. They are both church-going Christians who know, down deep in their hearts, that no matter what they may have done, that they can simply say that they are sorry, and start anew, having been washed in the blood of the lamb, as so to speak. Who knows? Perhaps one day she also will run for the office of President of the United States!

"I don't know how to feel atm. It was ahmazing. As soon as you get over the 'ohmygawd I can't do this' feeling, it's pretty enjoyable."

ATM? Was there a man not mentioned involved in this?

"I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them now they're dead,"

Have they not noticed she said "They're dead,"

A 18 year old murders a 9 nine year old girl because she wanted to see how does it feel to kill someone. The judge made the right decision, lock her up for life. I hope the judge never give her probation. Anyone that kills someone for the thrill of it, does not get any symapaty from me.

Wow...

Richard Harrow, get your mind out of the gutter! You've been watching far too much porn.

In this circumstance, a teen girl's diary (even a psychotic one), and following the phrase 'I don't know how to feel atm', we can assume that atm stands for 'at the time'.

And Lusi,

if I'm not really myself, then who am I?

It's a photograph.... the only thing you "see in her eyes" is your own hatred staring back at you. When I look into her eyes, I see an iris and pupil.

To those who just can't understand why the death penalty wasn't considered in this case... it's because the United States Supreme Court said so! Twice, in fact. In 1988, the Supreme Court abolished the death penalty for CHILDREN 15 and younger.

Then, in 2005, the conservative court justices appointed by George Bush went even further to abolish the death penalty for 16 and 17 year olds! God Bless the Supreme Court! They got it right both times.

Christians need to remember that "cast the first stone" is much more what Christ was teaching... not Crucify her! Crucify her! The calls for torture on a 15 year old girl forever marred by SSRIs are just as depraved as her wanting to know what it was like to kill. You want a 15 year old killed, you are DEPRAVED.

Luci

Let's just kill 'em all. All of the children that commit horrible crimes because of horrible abuses suffered during their short life-times should be tried as adults and executed. They are all spawns of the Devil that can never be rehabilitated. God forbid my precious tax dollars ever be used to house and feed such lost children.

I think I know the true spawn of the Devil. Those that would execute a tormented child to save a buck. Those that would try a child as an adult for a crime not committed by an adult, but by a child. I think that whatever age we agree to try a child as an adult is the very same age we should grant him emancipation from his parents on demand. The same age that he becomes an eligible voter. The same age to enjoy the full rights of every other American adult. You can't have it both ways.

Yeah, she said "them" and she dug two graves, so a few people are wondering "if there's a second victim out there somewhere." Yes! They should check the second grave to see if someone is in there!

Also, Disabled_Vet-2153438, I don't know how I would react to something this. You certainly do not. If I had to guess, however, I think the sense of grief would just swallow me up. No amount of vengeance could possibly fix the hole in my life and in my heart, so I doubt I would move past that.

Life happens and we have little control over it. The only control we have is how we respond to it. So yes, will I feel indignation if someone murdered a family member of mine, of course. Doesn't mean I have to lower myself to the level (of suffering) of the perpetrator. Killing is their business. Just because one is invited to a party doesn't mean that attendance is required.

Someone once told me that pure hell is doing the same thing over and over again, every day of your life, expecting a different result. So yes, some do deserve the death penalty but imagine a wild animal caged up for the rest of its life. They die a little bit everyday while stewing in their misery. A coward dies a thousand deaths, a hero only once.

Actually, OomYaaqub, Prozac is the only thing that kept me from killing people when my mother was dying.

How old were you when you took it, and how long were you on it? I thought Zoloft was a miracle drug too when I first took it, in my 40s BTW, but it was a different story after a while. It affects different people differently but some doctors will dispense it to minors as if it were candy. The only thing "safe" about it is that it has few cardiac affects and it is very difficult to take a fatal overdose.

There are a lot of meds that are okay short term for adults in response to a crisis. Even minor tranquilizers are okay for most people when used in that manner, although you can get addicted to them. With kids they need to be FAR more cautious. Unfortunately, this doesn't always happen. Today, children as young as TWO are often given dangerous psychiatric medications.

This was not her first kill. It was her first human kill.

I didn't see in the article that she had a history of killing animals, or of doing anything criminal at all.

The Old Lefthander, You spoke from the heart. Amazingly, you spoke from my heart as well.

To incarnate. Outward display of internal reality. So yes, much can be revealed by merely observing the eyes which are the windows to the soul. For the obtuse eyes and pupils would be all they see. Others, may be able to see what is behind the curtains. Just because of a cloudy day doesn't mean the sun has not come out to play.

Richard Harrow-

ATM = at the moment.

Ask any teen, chatspeak is their language.

It's always the child rapists and child murderers who get killed first in prison. Shouldn't take too long for someone to give this little bitch what she deserves.

I think 99 years and a day would have been better. That way, she could have served 99 years before being eligible for parole. This girl should never be allowed out in public again. There is no rehabilitation in prison, we all know that, so when she is let out in about 10 years, she will repeat her crime, in some way. Her family better look out because according to what she wrote in her diary, they are not safe with her out and about thinking about setting the house on fire, etc.

yep, totally agree with you.

This is as evil as it gets, except for Hitler, Stalin, etc. Can you imagine the terror that poor little girl felt as this piece of trash killed her. I'm sure the child's parents would have exacted their own form of punishment for what this monster did to their child.

Pilot1, go screw yourself. Missouri is a great place to live and has wonderful people living in it.
For new parents, if/when your little ones ask you if there are such things as monsters, make sure that while you dispell the make believe ones, you also let them know about the ones that look like humans. It can/must be done tactfully but needs to be done. This thing is a good case in point.

It's always the child rapists and child murderers who get killed first in prison.

For crying out loud, she was a child herself when she did it!!! She's 18 now but committed the crime at FIFTEEN!!!

Can you honestly tell me that a 15 year old doesn't know its wrong to kill someone? My four year old knows its not ok to hurt anybody. If I stub my toe, he'll hold my hand say "Mommy, are you ok? Do you need a bandaid?"

Sorry, but this girl is a total whackjob and should be held accountable for the ADULT actions she made. She even wrote about them! And thought it was hilarious that she just brutally murdered someone and that she was going to a church dance afterwards.

She was in her right mind, this wasn't a mental break down. This wasn't a "the meds made me do it" she was in full control of herself and her actions.

OomYaaqub, WHY are you making excuses for this girl? It simply baffles me. Over and over you are trying to get people to feel sorry for her and telling people to have compassion for her because she was 15 when she murdered, yes MURDERED, a 9 year old kid. Where is YOUR compassion for the innocent girl she brutally murdered? Because if you have any, I sure don't see it. It's not like this was an impulse act. This was PREMEDITATED murder. She took the time to dig two graves and then went out to find her victims. Then she nonchalantly journaled about it in her diary after she did it and then joked about going to church. I don't care if she was "only" fifteen. At fifteen, she had has enough foresight to know that murder is wrong. She IS old enough at that age to take accountability for her actions. I highly doubt it was due to any medication she was on. This was not a spur of the moment attack. She thought about it, preplanned it, and then joked about it in her diary afterward. That is the sign of a SICK person no matter how you try to sugar coat it, and the fact that you are covering for her makes me scared of you.

oomyaaqub....sure she was 15 when she commited the crime. Still thats no excuse & doesn't mean that she should get away with it. She knew full well what she was doing & YES she is considered a CHILD MURDERER because the girl she killed was a CHILD, doesn't matter that she herself was 15. I hope she gets what she deserves while she's in prison. I don't feel one little ounce of remorse for her, whether she was 15 or 35, what she did was WRONG.

There's not a 15 year old on the planet that doesn't know it's wrong to kill someone.

Oomyaaqub, are you one of the guys who offered Casey Anthony a home? You sound like one of them. Yes, Alyssa was 15 when she committed the murder, but 15 is more than old enough to know right from wrong, even in our society where we try to keep our children young for as long as possible. Even most mentally challenged people know that committing murder is wrong.

(Sorry if I offended with that last statement. It was not meant to be disparaging to mentally challenged people. I just wanted to show oomyaaqub is wrong in his/her thinking that a 15 year old doesn't know murder is wrong.)

Bob! That is not fair . . . she's just a kid herself for crying out loud.

bobmalaf

Hopefully there's someone in her assigned prison that also wants to know what it's like to kill someone and does us a favor and picks this monster

Lets all get together and hire a lawyer to file an appeal!!!

Jaime, I fully agree with Ooom and I'll tell you why. You and everyone who don't want to look at the extenuating circumstances are not seeking justice, you seek revenge. Although I'm not overtly religious, I'm grew up with the teachings of Christ and I'm willing to follow them when it comes to a CHILD that many here would torture to death.

This girl had no chance from the beginning. She was abandoned by her parents, and she was on Prozac. There are so many factors that could cause her think deviantly. It's not a matter of knowing right from wrong, it's a matter of being beat down for your entire life that you may not understand the consequences of "wrong".

I believe she knew right from wrong, but that doesn't justify the calls for torture or execution.

I believe she was affected by the Prozac. But most of all, I believe she was a KID when this happened. I have a 15 year old daughter... she looks like a 19 year old version of her mother. Until she opens her dumbass mouth... then I realize right away that she's STILL a KID, regardless of how old she looks.

I have a ton of compassion for the family of the girl (my 15 year old was once 9 too). I firmly believe this girl should sit in prison for at least 30 years before ever being considered for parole.

But the calls for torture and/or the death penalty for a 15 year old SICKEN me to my core. If people want to overlook all the extenuating circumstances of this girl's horrible life, go ahead! To me, they do it to justify their blood lust. I refuse to go there. Like the Supreme Court that abolished the death penalty for kids, I understand that executing a 15 year old is BARBARIC and DEPRAVED. Go live in North Korea or Iran if that's the justice you seek. Not in this country.

She was in her right mind, this wasn't a mental break down. This wasn't a "the meds made me do it" she was in full control of herself and her actions.

Since you posted this at 2 in the afternoon EST, I assume you only work part time, "DOCTOR". Where did you get your psychiatric training?

WHY are you making excuses for this girl? It simply baffles me. Over and over you are trying to get people to feel sorry for her and telling people to have compassion for her because she was 15 when she murdered, yes MURDERED, a 9 year old kid. Where is YOUR compassion for the innocent girl she brutally murdered?

Of course I have compassion for the 9 year old. But no matter what you do to her obviously mentally ill killer, it won't bring her back. At least we have the chance to save another child, who doesn't belong in an adult prison but in a secure mental hospital. I don't know if she can ever get well enough to go free and even if she can it will certainly take many years, but what possible good does it do to put crazy people in prison? The staff isn't trained to deal with them--how about some compassion for the people who work in prison? Mental hospitals, particularly the ones for the criminally insane, are hardly fun places either. But that is where she obviously belongs.

Or does anyone actually think that punishing or killing her would send a message to all the OTHER psychotic 15 year olds out there, all of whom follow the national news, of course, and have a perfect, adult level understand of cause and affect? /sarc

Are you mad because I called your son a sociopath?

First off, I work full time tyvfm

Second off, I'm a full time single mom

Third off, I'm also a full time student working on my Masters in Criminal Justice.

Is there anything else you want to ASSume Oom?

I'm so sorry that I don't want to mollycoddle a psychopathic killer who happened to be on Prozac.

I'm sorry that I don't care if she was 15 (A CHILD!) when she stabbed, repeatedly, a 9 year old girl. I'm sorry that I don't care that she was 15 (A child herself!) when she slashed a 9 year old girls throat. I'm sorry that I don't care that she was 15 (omg the horror! she's just a kid!) and she went to a church dance after brutally murdering and dumping in a shallow grave a 9 year old girl.

So what she was abused? That does NOT give her the right to kill anyone. When does personal responsibility come in to play?

Oh right, it's bleeding heart libbys like you that want to blame everyone and everything BUT the person who did it.

Sorry, but there are those of us who still believe that just because X happened in your life or Y medication was prescribed to you, does not give the excuse to excuse horrific behaviors.

Clean up your bleeding heart mess now. Thanks.

Ok, Cap'n... We can indulge your condescending rhetorical question!

Your indoctrination into criminal justice - was that the result of your desire to add college to a license to act as psychiatrist, pharmacologist, judge, jury and executioner? Why the Hell is it that SO MANY of you CJ majors sound so much like the murderers you claim to want to rub out?

If we start at your extreme end of the spectrum and work backwards, by the time we get to speeding tickets, it will be 50 to life for the 3rd offense.

Hell yeah- Monday Night Hanging just before Monday Night Football!

I'm sorry that I don't care if she was 15 (A CHILD!) when she stabbed, repeatedly, a 9 year old girl. I'm sorry that I don't care that she was 15 (A child herself!) when she slashed a 9 year old girls throat. I'm sorry that I don't care that she was 15 (omg the horror! she's just a kid!) and she went to a church dance after brutally murdering and dumping in a shallow grave a 9 year old girl. So what she was abused? That does NOT give her the right to kill anyone. When does personal responsibility come in to play? Oh right, it's bleeding heart libbys like you that want to blame everyone and everything BUT the person who did it.

First off, I have been a Republican since the late 1980s. Secondly, I actually know something about mental illness, and it's obvious you do not. This is a kid who was forced to take the dangerous drug Prozac, which destroyed her knowledge of right and wrong as it is KNOWN to make people less sensitive. so what do you imagine it does to a victim of psychotic depression? Guess what, even a non-psychotic depression is a lot more than "feeling sad". Your entire mind, not just your mood, doesn't function correctly. A task as simple as making a bed become hopelessly complicated.

And you obviously have no compassion whatsoever. A 15 year old is a KID. I don't even think we should let 16 year olds drive a car (and most civilized counties do NOT, BTW) because they are still kids. Otherwise they could vote, work with no restrictions, and leave home. But a 15 year old cannot even drive; most are still freshmen or sophmores in high school. I'm sorry a 9 year old died. But if she had drowned, would you blame swimming pools? If she had been killed in a car crash, would you blame cars? Blaming an obviously psychotic person is like blaming a swimming pool. She can be helped, or if not, at least treated appropriately in a mental hospital.

Way to be over the top Disgusted in WV.

FYI- I think this girls sentence was just and fair. The death penalty in this case is extreme. Life in prison, which more than likely, she'll be paroled in about 10-15 years.

Oom-

She was FORCED? What? Was she tied down and the pill jammed down her throat? Did someone rub her throat to make her swallow too? Did someone duct tape the knife in her hand as well?

Again, personal responsibility has to come in to play somewhere, some time. Maybe you're right, I don't understand mental illness but you seem to be an expert. Where is your doctorate from? Where do you practice?

Prozac destroys empathy? Prozac literally destroys right from wrong? Do the lines get erased all of a sudden and its a free for all? She needed additional mental help in the first place. I do not think children under the age of 19 should be placed on any antidepressant/ADD/ADHD/anxiety medication whatsoever. That, is strictly my opinion and you can disagree all you want. I know you will anyways. A pill will not miraculously "fix" all your woes. There will never be a miracle pill.

By the way, I've been on Prozac for about a year. I was diagnosed with clinical depression. In addition, I talk to a grief counselor. The key part is talking to someone. This girl didn't have that (that I know of) and she fell through the cracks like so many kids do. Our system from top to bottom needs to be shaken up and torn apart and rebuilt from scratch. However, there is only so much the system can do. Education begins at home.

However, she was 15. 15 is still old enough to know it is wrong to kill someone. I don't care how you spin or twist it. She still knew that what she did was wrong.

Your comparisons of swimming pools and car accidents are irrelavent. They have nothing to do with one person willingly and knowingly planning on taking another persons life. Whether the ages be 15 and 9 or 29 and 25. Car ACCIDENTS happen all the time, but they are not planned. Hence, accidents. Drinking and driving is different.

Again, drowning in a swimming pool is an ACCIDENT. Unless someone is holding your head underwater, then it is intentional.

Would this 9 year old have died otherwise? Was she healthy? Did she have some unknown disease that would have killed her in a year or 10? No? Would she have lived to a ripe old age (excluding freak or natural ACCIDENTS, notice a pattern here?) if this other girl hadn't come along and stabbed her and slashed her throat? Well.. now we'll never know thanks to crazy.

She was FORCED? What? Was she tied down and the pill jammed down her throat? Did someone rub her throat to make her swallow too? Did someone duct tape the knife in her hand as well?

What is WRONG with you??? I force my own 15 year old to take his psych meds twice a day. He knows perfectly well I can put him back in the hospital if he doesn't take them. Kids this age have no rights, and you know it. Please at least make an attempt to think like an adult even though sadism is much more fun. Psych meds may be necessary in many cases but they an also rob you of your will. Oh, yes, they most definitely can. Otherwise they wouldn't quite work at all, would they?

Seems to me you only focus on the medication part of this girl.

What happens when your son turns 18? You can no longer force him in to a hospital seeing as how he's an adult and can check himself out.

How am I a sadist? I'm not screaming for this girls execution. I just think she should be held responsible for her actions. How is that sadisitc? Cause its reality??

You never know when you'll find someone on the jury who will buy the sob story about being depressed.

I've been depressed for a while and my dr put me on Prozac. I've never once had the urge to kill someone just to see what it was like. Then again, I never had thoughts of suicide or hurting anyone before or after the meds.

This thing is just sick and twisted. Blaming her meds for her behavior is as disgusting as it is unbelievable.

She did get life with no parole. This vile creature should never see the light of day again.

Too bad she didn't succeed with the suicide attempt.

They plea bargained with her because her confession was not admissable and all of the other evidence was circumstantial. This plea bargain was the lesser of two evils, they could not take a chance on her getting acquitted. Also, the armed criminal action ensured many more years of lock up. It's tragic and unfair but this is what the prosecutor had to do.

Sorry, misread.

There is a possibility of parole.

Hopefully, the parole board will leave her locked up for the rest of her unnatural life.

That state needs to rethink how they work their system...the girl killed a child....i think that just screams death sentence....but no lets give her a chance to get out and posably do it again.

old enough to do adult crime....old enough to get adult time or punishment. She deserves the death penalty, what difference does in really make if she was 15 years old or 25 years old. -- she still knew and understood that murdering someone is wrong. If we would get tougher on teen crime.. maybe it would slow down the teen crime and how about holding parents accountable for the kids actions. Maybe parents would step up to the plate and do their job, raise kids who have some moral values and real character.

OK, did anyone realize this crazy girl is talking about more than one person. Them, their, they're. This is what she wrote in her journal. Was there any other missing kids durning this time fame. I think this is a question worth asking.

I feel horrible for the parents of that poor little girl. As far as this monster goes. ...

She is either a seriosly, mental person

or possibly she is a seriously violent person or maybe she is seriously mentally violent.

I have heard that anti depression drugs cans cause some strange thoughts, but the fact that she needs them in the first place is a clue that she has mental issues. The fact that she has obviously been in thereapy to be prescribed these drugs shows that she cannot be controlled. The fact that she acted out and then ENJOYED her actions..........ggggeeeeze....this girl needs to be put away in either a mental institution or jail. She needs to be evaluated constantly.

How is it that her therapist allowed her to stay on these drugs without evaluation? why didn't he see that threat that she potentially was and acted on it BEFORE she acted?

And yes, I did catch the "them, their, them and they're dead," line. Who else is victim here and when will these therapists act responsibly with patiens such as her? She should have been put away before all of this happened.

There is no doubt she would have been found guilty

You mean like Casey Anthony was found guilty?

A plea bargain is also cheaper than a trial. The people who scream about the cost to taxpayers of keeping someone incarcerated are probably the same folks who are complaining about the plea bargain.

I have heard that anti depression drugs cans cause some strange thoughts, but the fact that she needs them in the first place is a clue that she has mental issues. The fact that she has obviously been in thereapy to be prescribed these drugs shows that she cannot be controlled.

Proud, you need to do some more research before you spout off about something you obviously know nothing about.

Proud To be an American-510035,

It is extremely common for a medical doctor to prescribe antidepressants and antianxiety medications with no therapist. Chances are this girl was acting out and her parents took her to a regular doctor because insurance rarely covers mental health. If it does it is usually on the patient to meet the deductible first and then have some portion of a set number of visits covered. IE: My insurance will not cover mental health visits until I reach a $2000 deductible, and then it will cover 50% of 20 visits per year for a psychologist. A lot of medical doctors will wing it and prescribe the medications based on your description of symptoms. This is the reason Xanax is so accessible on the street.

This girl deserves the death penalty period.

Why a possibility of parole? What's she gonna do if she's paroled,even if she truly wants by then to be a productive citizen?No one will want to even be anywhere near her. Could you imagine her looking for any kind of job?And if she managed to get some type of govt support, where would she live?She'd probably have to move every week or so,as people would be vandalizing or even firebombing her residence.She has ruined any chance she might have at any kind of life if she ever does walk out of prison.Hopefully this case can serve as an example to any young people out there to think twice if they're thinking of finding out how it feels to kill, or to be free of all their parents' rules,etc.

On the other hand, why did she become like that?bad parrents? bad school? hormone problem? Learned on TV entertainment, learned on TV news, learned on TV how politicians/rich and heroes get away with it all (cold hearted)?

Surely she had a problem (trained by life, she was not born that way) with loving the humans, but we should look at the past facts, and I bet you from my experience that you will find a reason at least 2/3 of the time.--But most of your statements clearly show that you have been hardened to dish on others without knowing the facts!

But either way this is not funny, she has the same cold personality like the Fed Government, they do not care who dies either in USA, often until after the fact, look at all the people the police shoot and kill each year!!--almost 1000 last year just by gun alone. never mind car chasing 10,000 to their death!

You never know when you'll find someone on the jury who will buy the sob story about being depressed.

They don't generally give Prozac to a MINOR unless a psychiatrist has diagnosed you as depression. But of course you, a total stranger who read a short article on the Vine, knows better. /sarcasm

I've never once had the urge to kill someone just to see what it was like. Then again, I never had thoughts of suicide or hurting anyone before or after the meds. This thing is just sick and twisted. Blaming her meds for her behavior is as disgusting as it is unbelievable.

Oh, I get it. It didn't happen to YOU so it never happened to anyone. It DID happen to my son when he was 14. The only reason he didn't commit a violent act is that he refuses to leave the house except for therapist and doctor visits (I have to homeschool) and I locked up every sharp object. Right now they are arranging in-home services, something I had to have him put on Medicaid to afford. Honestly, don't you understand that YOU are not the measure of all things? By your logic, if my husband is deathly allergic to cats I should get several cats anyway because after all, I'm not allergic, so therefore allergy doesn't really exist.

On the other hand, why did she become like that?

If it's schizophrenia or perhaps schizoaffective disorder, she was born with it and it was only a matter of time. I can believe that lots of thing can cause it to manifest early, though. That's the part we don't know.

What about the prosecutors and judges that let trash like her make plea bargains to get a lesser sentence. Bring back the chain gangs and put the murders and hardened criminals on the interstates fixing pot holes for the rest of their lives. Let the drunk drivers and texters kill them instead of innocent state employees.

Calm your ass down OomYaaqub. Yes, I was talking about my own personal experience, excuse me for being one in millions that does NOT suffer from the side effects of Prozac or any other medication.

And gosh golly, I'm sorry that I just don't believe the excuse of "my meds made me do it." I guess if I was facing the death penalty or life in prison, I'd probably say or do anything that would lower my sentence. Geez, what a novel thought.

Who knew that people lie to make their own punishment just a little bit easier to handle?

And yes, I do realize that the world does not revolve around me. But I also realize that if it did, my life would be so much easier.

By your logic, just because your son is a sociopath, that must mean that everyone is too, right?

I

have heard that anti depression drugs cans cause some strange thoughts, but the fact that she needs them in the first place is a clue that she has mental issues. The fact that she has obviously been in thereapy to be prescribed these drugs shows that she cannot be controlled.

These words are a classic example of the ignorance and stigma associated with mental illness in general. "The fact that she has obviously been in therapy to be prescribed these drugs shows that she cannot be controlled." Really? Do you have any idea how many people in this country have been in therapy and have been prescribed "these drugs"? We're talking about business executives, doctors, nurses, lawyers, you name it. Your best friend or your brother or sister may be in therapy and/or taking these drugs and you have no idea! The vast majority of people in this situation are not out of control. There are a few cases in which a person can have severe side effects as stated by another commenter-of course, the doctor should be notified immediately if this happens. The media only seem to report on mental illness when someone does some horrible crime or some really bizarre action. I wish they would report more when someone with mental illness achieves some great thing-though that would not really be news, as it happens all the time. It's just that people don't realize it because most people with mental illness seem so "normal."

My son waqs in therapy, as was I and we take Prozac. He is not mental and neither am I. So are you saying we cannot be controlled? Get a life, Proud to Be an American.

CaptBrngDwn and HShaver, I don't know about where you live (and it doesn't matter to me), but where I am, there are a lot of commercials on tv for many medications, including Prozac. They include the disclaimer that says that the medication can cause depression and thoughts of suicide in young people. Just because you are fortunate not to have these side effects, doesn't mean that other people won't. Count yourselves lucky.

The article doesn't say if she was under a therapist's care or just an MD's care, although many doctors (therapists and MDs) prescribe medications without proper follow up until you need a new prescription.

I think we should hold her parents responsible as well!!!!!!! civil law.

If you got a psycho child YOU need to take steps to protect the general public!!!!! YOU can be held financially responsible.

So OomYaaqub please take note regarding your OWN potential time bomb!!!!!!!!!

That state needs to rethink how they work their system...the girl killed a child....i think that just screams death sentence.

There's nothing to rethink Justin C. The Supreme Court abolished the death penalty for kids 15 and under in 1988. Then in 2005, they abolished it for 16 and 17 year olds. When it comes to executing CHILDREN, it's illegal in this country.

The Supreme Court got it right both times. The calls to execute a child are depraved and disgusting.

By your logic, just because your son is a sociopath, that must mean that everyone is too, right?

My son is not a sociopath. He has never actually harmed anyone else, human or animal. He was a socialist at the age of 10, and I don't agree with socialism, but for a child it's a good sign because they don't know any better and at least they are being idealistic. (It was Churchill who said "If a young man of 20 isn't a socialist he has no heart. But if a man of 40 is still a socialist, he has no head.") My son wanted books by Karl Marx for his birthday and I indulged, even Das Kapital. He did this not out of rebellion, but because he didn't want anybody to be hungry or homeless. He won praise by veterinarians, etc., for his gentleness with animals large and small. He cried when they died like any kid would. He developed signs of schizophrenia shortly before his 11th birthday, which is unusual but not unheard of. It could happen to anybody at any age.

Genuine "sociopathy" is actually rather rare as far as all the other, much more common mental illnesses go. Please educate yourself.

But it wasn't a slam dunk case. Since she was mentally ill, she could have been lying even in her diary. Some kids that are mentally ill do do that. And where's the second victim? She wrote them and they're. That tells that either she is not well schooled or lying up a storm about how many victims she killed, perhaps fooling herself. And if it went to court the judge could have dismissed the diary as evidence.

HShaver,

Obviuosly you are not paying attention! It went to court and the Diary WAS as admiited as evidence and yet it helped get her convicted. As for the attorney's claim the Prozac did, that was just a despiration move as he knew he had no case to defend his client and all he could do was throw a hail mary and hope it worked!

She wrote them and they're.

Handwriting analysts and psychotherapists have both noted over the years that criminals will distance themselves from emotion by removing personal nouns and pronouns.

"I took him to school." from a child killer who's lying about what they did is more likely to write "Arrived at school." In this case calling the victim "them" puts distance between the killer and victim. Acknowledging the victim was a "she" makes it too personal.

I've personally seen "they" and "them" used when someone's discussing a person they (I just used it there) don't want to put a gender on. It's not pluralizing it necessarily - just neutering it. Depersonalizing. Dehumanizing. Turning the whole thing into an event and not a victim.

Speaking of kill some more, her diary states, "I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them now they're dead." Where is the them? They only found one.

It may not be an actual pluralization with the use of the words them, their, they're. It could possibly just be the way she's writing about the little girl without specifically talking about Elizabeth herself by using the words her and she. I could be wrong and by no way am any sort of expert but it's been three years since she committed the crime and I would at least hope that by now the police and investigators have looked into the writings in her journal and the uses of those plural pronouns.

shot like an animal? i really hope you never see the light of day of jury duty.

You bring up a good point. Now instead of the money going to the victim who may have grown up to be a productive member of society, that money instead goes to the criminal scumbag. Free room and board for the garbage.

Anna, that girl IS an animal, and nothing but an animal!

Shot like an animal would be too good. She should be hung by her ankles and her throat slit to insanguinate to death, the same way they butcher pigs.

Don't compare that thing to animals. Animals at least don't kill for the thrill of killing. It's a necessity for them.

There was nothing necessary and nothing to be gained from this little girl's brutal murder.

There will be no appeals because there was no trial. She plead guilty. Did you read the story, Heather?

Actually, dolphins and orcas have been observed killing for fun in the wild. Two of the ocean's smartest creatures...

And I believe the term for bleeding out is exsanguinate, not insanguinate. Bleeding-in doesn't really make much sense in that context, unless you want to bruise her to death.

The insanity you see in her eyes isn't insanity. It's a person facing the reality of a life behind bars. She's a psychopath with no human feelings. Most of them look perfectly normal, even charming and jolly.

Her mental status-(the need for the prozac) would exempt her from capital punishment.

Raisa Ivanova, really? You want to get on here and correct someone's use of words? How about bleeding in doesn't make any sense in any context. Maybe the insanity we see in her eyes isn't insanity? If I see "insanity" in her eyes, then guess what, it's insanity.

Insanity in her eyes? that YOU can see, give me a brake, just because she did not meet your Face Book Standard of fashion, and fingernail covers lased with e coli 0157!------ on a mug shot!

Also, some of you here dishing, better be careful your employer does not check you out and sees your "opinion"on how to kill people!--there are a lot of insanity statements here--not that different from this sick young lady!----trust me if you think it you are about 30 % there given the right circumstance--statestically speaking of course.

Her mental status-(the need for the prozac) would exempt her from capital punishment.

Actually her age does, per the Supreme Court. She is 18 now but committed the crime as a 15 year old, mentally ill CHILD. To those of you who say she should be butchered like an animal, etc., all I can say is have you no shame?!?

I see "insanity" in her eyes, then guess what, it's insanity.

You can tell that by looking a photograph? Gee, you could save the health care system a LOT of money. No longer would people have to go to a psychiatrist for a diagnosis. You could just glance at a photo for 10 seconds and "just be able to tell."

Of course, if she is "insane", why didn't the jury give her the insanity defense.

lol Raisa. Thanks for blowing my theory out of the water with your dolphin and orca fact.

:p

Can anybody say THE BAD SEED!

Still trying to figure out why oomyaaqub feels the need to continue to try & defend what this girl did? Whether or not she's "insane, mental" "15 or 35", what she did was WRONG. Killing just because she wanted to know how it felt, but she was still able to comprehend what she did, means she knows it was wrong but didn't care. Plain & simple even if you don't like it she is & will always remain for the rest of her life a CHILD MURDERER. Sure she was 15 but the innocent LITTLE girl she killed for FUN, was only 9!! In noway is killing anyone right, doesn't matter the age or "mental illness" the person may or may not have. Anyone who tries to justify such a thing, to me, is crazy in their own right to even think that there is just cause for the innocent slaughter of someone who did nothing wrong & lost their life simply because someone wanted to know what it felt like to murder. Maybe you need to rethink your morals if you think it was okay for her to do this because she's "mental." I suppose you think her sentence wasn't fair? Well I'll agree, what's not fair is that she even has the possibility to get out, my guess you think it's not fair she got life. Again, I don't give a rat's patootie how old she is, she deserves to rot in prison, I even hope someone kicks her butt while she's in there!!

Cases like this are what capital punishment is for

In Iran maybe. Here in the good ole USA, the Supreme Court abolished the death penalty for CHILDREN 15 and under back in 1988.

So, cases like this are NOT what capital punishment is for.

Larissa... oom probably feels the need to defend this girl because so many people REFUSE to look at the extenuating circumstances that virtually EVERY judge would consider. Take your own comments. To you, it doesn't matter if she was 15 or 35. To me, the father of a 15 year old, that kind of thinking is ludicrous. There's a HUGE difference between a 15 and 35 year old. I also know people who were ruined by SSRIs and I believe they may have played a major role in this girl's malfunction. Maybe you don't want to consider any extenuating circumstances to justify how you feel she should be treated. But some of us are willing to consider everything that went into this.

I don't want to see her released from prison anytime before her 50th birthday (and only if she's mentally fit). I have much compassion for the dead girl's family. But I also have compassion for the KID who did this. She was a KID and that DOES mean something.

actually, Harold, it abolished it for all kids under 18. But while I would not set age limits, I would certainly agree that she needs many years of therapy and appropriate medication before she can ever be out of the hospital. And not everyone can ever be out of the hospital even with that. Still I'd rather leave it to experts than Viners!

Gee...ever think that maybe that was one more symptom of their disease, and not the cause? i.e. They were already messed up and therefore put on an antidepressant, NOT the other way around.

Totally different thing. The Columbine shooters did what they did because they had been bullied and tortured from kindergarden through senior year. This girl did what she did because she thought it'd be fun. She's a psychopath,a nd proof that sociopaths and psychopaths are born, not made

Gee...ever think that maybe that was one more symptom of their disease, and not the cause? i.e. They were already messed up and therefore put on an antidepressant, NOT the other way around.

ALL psyc meds affect your mind to some extent or other. This is true by definition. I am not knocking them as they are clearly necessary for some people to function at all, but in my experience and that of many people I know, the SSRIs are particularly bad. When someone feels worse on them, the usual response is to prescribe even MORE. Soon neither the patient nor the doctor can distinguish between signs of the illness and side effects of the meds. Of course, even if the patient feels better, that's hardly proof that the meds are really helping either. After all, most people feel pretty good after several drinks, or after smoking a joint, but that doesn't make them more functional.

Zoloft (very similar to Prozac) gave my son temporary dyskinesthesia, (uncontrollable, distorted facial movements) which was a blessing in disguise since the doctor HAD to take him off that garbage. This symptom is more often caused by the older antipsychotics but can also occur with SSRIs. In some cases it becomes a permanent disability. Luckily it was caught in time.

Yes, Big Pharma gets away with another murder. We should outlaw these medicines because a few people on them hurt others. Don't take into account how many people these medicines allow to have a functional life. So because of a hand full of cases, you want to restrict a bucketful of success?

The thing with these drugs is that each individual is affected differently. You need to find the correct drug or else it makes the mental condition worse. My guess is that this had little to nothing to do with the Prozac and everything to do with the fact that this girl is just a sociopath, and would have done it drugs or not.

Luvox and Prozac are different. Besides, different people react differently to the same meds. Some people need Prozac to even out their behavior, and for some it is bad news. You can never tell unless you try it, sad but true fact.

Which is why they have often hospitalized people prior to a major med change just so they'd know. Insurance doesn't want to pay for this, and Obamacare won't help. Supposedly you have loved ones who should be monitoring you, but oops, the new privacy laws mean even your spouse can't know what your're on or what to look for. We're very lucky parents can still know what their minor children are on. But try finding a psychiatrist who will actually listen to you.

The girl is probably demon-possessed! Many will not understand this, but it is a fact of life! We need more education in the matter!

demon posession? hmm, i would say it's more likely a reaction to antidepressants. if you read the side effects, especially for children and teens, it says it can cause suicidal and homicidal tendencies. why, after she attempted suicide, did they not take her off of prozac? prozac messes with the chemicals in the brain. it changes people. and they want to put all of us on it.

She murdered then went to a CHURCH dance. So much for your theory EK.

@Devil's Son The devil "believes" in God too and attends church more faithfully than many Christians and other religious people.

How many people take Prozac? Quite a few I would think. If this were a common side effect (homicidal and suicidal tendencies), the "ambulance chaser" lawyers would be riding this piggy all the way to the bank. Not to mention the fact that there would be a lot of reported deaths from suicide/murder due to Prozac and a class action suit would already be filed. Side effects can occur taking any type of medicine. The Prozac defense was a desperate attempt from Alyssa's lawyer. There were a lot of other factors that molded this young girl to do what she did.

I guess I better keep a close eye on my 83 year old mom, since she takes Prozac for anti-depression. She just might snap one day!

The "Them" they she talks about is just the one girl. The quote is out of context. You can google the whole thing that was read in court.

As for demon possesion-it might be rabbit...it might...but I doubt it. She knew what she was doing. She wasn't being possesed by some other entity without control of herself. She dug graves days earlier, and told others ahead of time that she was interested in how it felt to kill someone. Going to church negats nothing. She HAD to go to church. It wasn't like she was attending in order to grow closer to God or something.

That said, she's lucky. She gets three square meals, free healthcare, and a roof over her head for the rest of her life on MY dime. I have to worry about paying rent, feeding my kids healthy food over cheap junk and that root canal I can't afford.

Something's wrong somewhere...

I think it was a grammatical error on her part. She didn't want to give clues to who she killed, so she used the indefinite "Their" when she should have said "his or her". Still, I think bad grammar is the least of her issues.

Well, actually this is a pretty common side effect, maybe not to this extreme but meds work different on each person, she may have just been really highly suseptable to these effects, upon saying this I still feel sheis not some one that should ever be unleashed on society again. I believe strongly in the death penalty, and am glad I would not have to be the one to administer it(to anyone ) but particularly this young girl. I am not defending her but the as horrible as this was the prosicutor might have had trouble finding a jury that could say kill this young girl, case in point Casey Anthony. EVERYONE knew she was guilty but she walked and I don't think they wanted to take that chance with this girl.

-- They should stone her like in the real life movie stoning Soraya, bit that sxxx out of her, first digging her half way only leaving half of her body on the ground first rock to be the honor the little girl's mom following by dad family and friends... If that happens in my country am sure she be dead within a few months in jail..!!!!!!!

So you support torture. Shame on you.

actually, Kris, you should keep an eye on your grandmother. antidepressants can make some people more depressed.

why do you think "quite a few" people are on prozac? we're all depressed? or is big pharma making more money that way? depression is a symptom, and taking medication is just covering it up. haven't you seen the antidepressant commercials? "may cause suicidal thoughts...". if you tell your doctor this, they put you on more drugs.

what's even more disturbing is the unknown... what made this girl think it was okay to do this? How can someone so young resort to this type of violence? What did she go through that made her think this was a proper way to act? Who taught her this violence? Her whole family needs to be investigated, something went SERIOUSLY wrong.

DeMaris - Actually, I do watch my mom (not grandmother) since I currently live with her as a caretaker. I'm well aware of her condition enough to see if any changes occur. She just started a low dose of Prozac last week and is still depressed, but it might take awhile to have any effect. Her doctor said to have her try it and see if there's any improvement. Believe me, if she starts looking at the butcher knife a little too long, I will know she should stop taking it.

Two years prior, she was on 20 different pills from one of her doctors. She was totally out of it and was in and out of nursing homes. She lost weight down to 78 lbs. and we thought she was going to die. We took her to a different doctor who cut out the majority of her pills - she was also on Vicodin and we feel she was addicted to it. Now, she's back to her old self and weighs 130 lbs!

I'm well aware of the effects that drugs have on people, but there are also benefits to them as well. I just have a hard time believing that Prozac was the main problem with Alyssa. She had a pretty messed up background that didn't help her mental problems. Since she lived with her grandmother, I doubt that she could afford the psychiatric help that she needed, or maybe she didn't recognize the symptoms. We'll never know what drove her to do what she did. As others stated - two lives have been lost here, one innocent and one not so innocent.

Correct Anna, but remember this is USA the word "correction institutioin here have no meaning"--(it sounds nice to us in the rest of the western world)--It should be "learning institution", because most learn far worse things in there (and make pacts) than before they came in!

Never gonna happen. A mental facility is too expensive to be in for most people, unless they have at least two private insurances. Even prisoners such as her won't be put in a mental institution because of that.

If she is treated and released I hope she moves in next door to you. After all she should be fine then, right?

really!

There are some people, by the nature of their actions, (and without exceptions) should be considered "disposable"....never to be free and part of society again...........ever.

I think you misunderstood me. She is eligible for parole some day and I don't want the people who will be in constant contact with her to fall for her "remorse." I predicted in an earlier post exactly what she would say to the family at sentencing including "I'm sorry - I would give my own life to change it" etc. etc. and I said to not believe a word of it.

If there is ever a time that we can truly treat sociopathy then her true remorse may occur but I doubt it. Nonetheless, at some point, someone is going to look at an older version of this woman years from now and may decide she deserves a second chance. She might have been better off committing her crime in Mississippi.

Personally, my belief is that she should have been convicted of 1st degree murder and sentenced to life without parole, but the prosecutors clearly knew that to take this to trial would risk a successful attempt by defense lawyers to portray her as a victim herself and risk an acquittal or much reduced sentence.

...and as a strong element in her attempts over the next several years to convince people she has changed and deserves parole, she will become immersed in prison ministries and act as a mentor and spiritual advisor toward other inmates. She will also assist staff in dealing with other inmates, get her high school diploma and probably even a college degree. If you revisit this case in ten years or so, I can guarantee you this will be her institutional behavior and she will be trusted by prison administrators.

@Anita - Hope? She's probably a sociopath -so there is no hope.

@wryview - read my posts 12.4 and 12.5. I've spent much of my professional life dealing with sociopaths. She is not old enough to be definitively diagnosed as a sociopath, but I agree: That is what she is.

At the same time, our understanding of the chemistry and workings of the brain and mind advance constantly and someday there may be a way to treat sociopathy. It does not follow however that she should be released even if that ever occurs.

Hey Anita, I hope when they "think" they have rehabilitated her that she comes to live next door to you! She did this at 15 years of age!!!! Most 15 year olds are thinking about getting their driving permits or what they are going to wear to school tomorrow not " Gee I wonder how it would feel to kill somebody"?? Natural Born Killer, that's what she is with the premeditation to go dig graves!!! And where did the sister go after she lured the girl to the kill site? Was she in on it too? Maybe she needs to have a bunk in her sister's cell too!! I say put her down and harvest her organs for people waiting on transplant lists!! A lesser plea option may save money on a trial but for her to have the slightest chance of getting out, the savings is not worth it!

@glass half empty - Wow, you sure are bloodthirsty. So an eye for an eye, two wrongs make a right, is that it? Aren't we better than that? Tell me, are you willing to do the job yourself, to "put her down" as you say?

Your username is strangely appropriate.

People younger then her have killed; Amarjeet Sada (at 8 years old), Eric Smith ( at 13 years old), Joshua Phillips ( at 14 years old), George Stinney ( at 14 years old), Jon Venables and Robert Thompson ( both at the age of 10) and Mary Bell at the age of 11.

All through the history of the world people younger than her have killed. They were called soldiers. Remember, way back when, people were considered adults way earlier than at 18.

Really hope for a sociopath who kills a nine year old girl, and enjoys it. Really? If she moved next door to you you wouldn't be saying that now would ya...?

So many questions..if this girl was suffering from depression and put on meds, was she being monitored, was she receiving counseling as one that is diagnosed with depression should be? Where were her parents, her dr., her therapist? Is every person that commits such a horrific crime going to blame it on medication? What went on in her life that was so horrible to put her in that state of mind? I don't buy the "blame the prozac" theory. This girl had it all planned out, it was premeditated..2 graves dug...in advance. She was mentally capable of planning this out, more than capable of digging 2 graves to hide what she was going to do in hopes not to ever get caught...and then there is the diary, them and their...maybe she only had the one victim and didn't go through with a second..but I hope that law enforcement keeps nothing unturned. As far as her spending her life in jail...the death penalty will not bring that poor little 9 yr old girl back and the death penalty will just be an end to having her sit in jail and relive every moment. I would rather see her sit her life in jail, knowing that this is her life, this is the outcome of her decision that horrific day...and I am not sure what they were thinking when they ruled life in prison with the chance of parole but I sure hope when that day comes around where she has to go in front of the parole board..that the family of that little 9 yr old girl is present and that they again, recommend life in prison, parole denied..and I hope for the same outcome for every parole decision in her future because her future is planned already, she chose her future.

The death penalty is an easy reach when children are involved, however, all the death penalty really does is make the statement "let's demonstrate that killing is wrong by killing". It makes no sense - an eye for an eye leaves the whole world blind, nor is revenge what this means. An eye for an eye is meant to imply that the punishment should be in line with the crime. I'm not at all shocked that such horrific things happen - we got what we asked for when we silently accept a society that feels nothing is wrong. Everyone is so focused on "being tolerant of others" in the name of propriety, yet what we're really doing is creating a society where nothing is wrong. The old adage "as long as you don't bother anyone else" be whatever you want is a bunch of bologna!! We can't have it both ways folks - we can't say on one hand "whatever floats your boat" and then turn around and be shocked that stuff like this happens!! The tragedy here is for the girl who lost her life and for her family. We blame everything like medications, various "conditions", and upbringing for these tragedies. When are we going to wake up, toss the excuses out the window and pick up some good old fashioned morality? Yes, I know, to some who'll read morality is a naughty word - but make no mistake, lack of morality is what got us in this mess!

The story of Jon Venables and Robert Thompson makes my blood run hot and I get hot flashes.



falconear... nicely put. Well said. Way to be.

Problem is that Elizabeth's father is also in prison just like the girl that murdered her. He didn't even get to go to his own daughter's funeral. When are these men going to realize they need to be a part of their kid's lives and straighten up. Though I don't think that Alyssa would have been better off with her father with his assault charges. Makes you wonder if he assaulted her mom and she witnessed that.

Only in America is "real justice" to kill someone who killed someone else.

Kim-2212075 - your post makes no sense. You talk about Elizabeth - the little girl who died - then spew on about Alyssa's father having assault charges against him? Are you just making this garbage up! The girl is a sociopath. Nothing is going to help her and her "apology" means nothing. She should be in jail for life.

My sympathies to the family of the girl who was killed. How terribly sad for them.

@Sam - Most people in this thread have justice confused with vengeance. Society has no business meeting out vengeance.

Amen to that...

Do you KNOW Elizabeth's family? If not, then please don't speak for them. If one of my kids were killed I would still look at it as a rational person, not a vengeful one. I chose to raise my kids in the inner city where life isn't perfectly safe but we've been lucky so far, aside from my younger son's illness which would have happened anywhere.

Wishing that a 15 year old girl be placed in a wood chipper Saddam Hussein style makes you just like Saddam Hussein. You are just as depraved as say, a kid wanting to know what it feels like to kill. You are no better than her at all.

Correct MSpielman,

True Sociopaths just don't live in the same world as so called normal people do. They are totally void of any feeling at all.

To bad she just didn't want to know what suicide felt like??

Agreed. I bet her PCL-R showed both strong narcissistic and antisocial tendencies. She says she's sorry, but the reality is that nothing would prevent her from commiting the same crime if ever released on parole.

To bad she just didn't want to know what suicide felt like??

She did try to kill herself. This kid's entire life has been a mess. It's no excuse for doing what she did... but for me, I have some compassion for her. I don't want her released from prison any time before her 50th birthday, but I feel the calls for torture or even capital punishment are sickening.

Amen to your statement it is so true.

Everyone is entitled to a defense per our constitution. However, a moral lawyer will do the bare minimum in defending people like this. Everyone is entitled to a defense; it doesn't need to be a vigorous one, though!

Pit bulls should be euthanized with her; then even more lives would be saved.

I agree!!

Ugh your stupidity is leaking through Kathryn.

Morons should be euthanized. Like this girl and people who think all pits are bad.

Idiots shouldn't own dogs.

Kathryn & Jon - that is the most ignorant comment. Maybe you should do some actual research on this matter before spewing your obviously uneducated comments.

kathryn , just do the world a favor and never have an animal or a child , if something tragic happened with any pet, its because they had bad pet parents. your ignorance is sad and sick minded.. as for this serioulsy mentally ill girl, she need to be locked up in psych hospital, prison would be a picnic compared with living with 'real' psychotics for rest of her life

My pit bull would just give her a good tongue bath . This girl needs the electric chair.

Totally agree! If I gave her to my pit bull, she would have been licked to death. That would have been too good for her.

Having said that, let's not turn this into a good/bad pit bull argument here. This is way off the thread here.

This girls possessed, who would randomly do this?

Please tell me someone had Kathryn sterilized....

Kathyrn you should never have kids.... or a pet... Ignorant idiots..

And what do pit bulls have to do with this article?? must have missed the part where they were even mentioned at all.....

We all know there are really sick and twisted people out there that became that way either through bad wiring or by their upbringing or some combo of both, so it's not really a surprise. But what makes me sick is to think of the victim and her parents. I just cannot imagine someone killing my daughter because they were curious about killing. How could you go on living??? When it comes from a teenage neighbor girl--it just makes me wonder if there's anything you can do to protect your children from these kinds of crimes.

And here we go off on a tangent about a comment on a dog. FOCUS this girl slit a little child's throat and strangled them. Then she dug a hole and threw her in it. Then she went to church. But hey, lets jump on Kathrine she said pits are bad. REALLY???????

I agree, why was there a plea deal? Did she get extra points for leading them to the body?

It's not unusual to give a plea deal in cases like this. Remember, it only takes one sympathetic juror to have a hung jury. I'm quite sure they wanted to avoid THAT outcome, for sure! It costs money to have a trial, much less have more than one of them IF the jury is hung. I'm sure we all can cite cases that we all "knew" the verdict would be guilty -- but Not Guilty was rendered. (Remember Casey Anthoney?)

Let's see... According to my PDR, there's a short-term risk for increased suicidality and a recommendation to do a careful risk-benefit analysis before just sticking someone on it. I see nothing about killing someone out of curiosity then being giddy about it, or psychosis, or anything else that would cause that.

As I've said before, ever stop and think that maybe, just MAYBE she was put on prozac because she was messed up, and not became messed up because of the prozac?

Chris, "messed up" infers something more than depression. I understand the primary use of Prozac is for depression. I absolutely agree with you, though, that she was put on Prozac for a mental illness (likely depression) and the Prozac did not cause her depression.

Prozac is terrible. My doctor put me on it and yes, it -can- cause violent urges. Thank God I never acted on any of them and realized the medication was bad for me.

among the side effect listed: "acting aggressive or violent"....

recommendation: call 911...

no further comments

There is a very big difference between ordinary depression and a psychotic depresson. Antidepressants are contraindicated for psychotic depression unless anti-psychotics are given at the same time. I think there was either a misdiagnosis in this case or the Prozac turned depression into psychotic depression.

Morons should be euthanized. Like this girl and people who think all pits are bad.

What a surprise. You would kill a teenager who was forced to take dangerous drugs, but you defend the world's most dangerous dogs. All pits ARE bad. Even the ones that don't kill people still kill other pets. I had rabbits that had the run of my lawn for years before one jumped the fence and murdered them. I know WHICH dog because my elderly neighbor tried to chase the dog away until it went after HIM. He was lucky he could run inside in time to save his OWN life. Animal control wouldn't do anything because they are terrified of being accused of racism. I hate, hate, hate this breed. At least in my neighborhood, it is only drug dealers, pimps, and gang bangers who own them. The dogs should all be euthanized and the owners belong in jail. They don't have to confiscate them all, but they should forcibly spay and neuter them all so the breed goes extinct. Most human victims of pit bulls are CHILDREN. How many CHILDREN have to die? Dogs have no rights.

And you call ME hateful? wow. Dogs are not born bad, they are TRAINED badly. ANY animal will turn on you. I've been bitten by Dalmations and Chihuahua's. My boyfriend had to have reconstruvtive surgery on his face because a Black Lab tore half his face off.

She wasn't forced to take anything.

Maybe schizophrenic children should be forcibly spayed and nuetered. Don't genetics play a large part in Schizophrenia? Maybe if we sterilized all the crazies out there, we'd see a significant drop in baby killers and mindless whackadoos.

Yeah, not much fun to have mean blanket statements for everyone huh?

Not all pits are bad. Just like not all mental health patients are bad. Quit generalizing.

Dogs are not born bad, they are TRAINED badly

Any vet and any breeder will tell you some dogs are born vicious no matter how much effort someone puts into training them. Any professional trainer will tell you he sometimes recommends a dog be put to sleep because it is too dangerous.

She wasn't forced to take anything.

Obviously she WAS, she's a minor. I routinely force my son to take psych meds. It's amazing that you reserve all your compassion for a particular type of dog that is beloved of drug dealers, pimps and gang bangers.

lol I irk your jaw don't I Oom? You seem to dislike my comments more than you dislike yourself.

Dogs are related to what? Wolves? They still carry basic characteristics and mindsets of the wolves? Weird. Animals are animals. They can NEVER be truly "tame" no matter how many thousands of years they live besides us. There are dogs I would not own because they have a worse reputation than pits (shocking, I know!) Maybe you should do some research instead of relying solely on blind hatred and media indoctrination.

And no, she was not FORCED to take anything. Again, nobody shoved the pill down her throat. Nobody forced her to swallow it. Nobody put a gun to her head and said take it or die.

I find it astounding that you have sympathy for psychopaths but none for those that can't speak or stand up for themselves.

Your weakness is crazy kids. Mine is animals (of all breeds, whether I like them or NOT) that people blindly hate because of idiotic people who do not know the first thing about responsible pet ownership.

There are dogs I would not own because they have a worse reputation than pits (shocking, I know!)

I didn't say there weren't. There are other terriers (Irish and Kerry Blue, to name two) that are typically even more aggressive and some of them have an agility that allows them to jump staight up and bite a grown man in the face. I had an Irish Terrier and I've seen it personally--however, my idiot father refused to have this dog put to sleep even after several professional trainers advised it. Eventually he savaged a child, years after I had grown up and moved out of the house.

However, these breeds are quite rare and expensive, so the criminal element tends to avoid them unless you are talking about white collar criminals. Pit bulls are disgustingly common and very cheap; every big city animal shelter is constantly full of them. (Big surprise.)

And no, she was not FORCED to take anything. Again, nobody shoved the pill down her throat. Nobody forced her to swallow it. Nobody put a gun to her head and said take it or die.

Minors have no rights to refuse medication. How can you just sit there and say such absurdities? My own 15 year old son knows that if he doesn't take his meds, either his psychiatrist, his father, or me will put him in the hospital again, where the usual stay is four to six weeks. And guess what, at the hospital they will DEFINITELY force you to take meds, by injection while held down by burly aides if necessary. An adult might have to be declared incompetent by a judge, but a minor is presumed to be "incompetent" to make his or her own decisions.

People like you are disgustingly common. Again, it is not determined by the breed, but how they are raised.

Purebred dogs have a higher chance of being aggressive than mutts do. And no, pit bulls are not "disgustingly cheap" if you actually take the time to do some research, you'll find that they can be very expensive.

And once again, she could refuse her medication. It sounds like this girl wasn't in the best of hands to begin with, so why would they force her to do anything?

This isn't about your son, try not to forget that. You sound like a loving mother that wants the best for her kid, if that involves putting him in the hospital for his own safety and they safety of others, then so be it.

I don't think this girl had many advocates on her side. It certainly doesn't sound like she had people to make sure she did the right thing, or else this whole article and following comments wouldn't be here.

THAT is my whole point. It does not sound like anybody forced her to do or take anything to the detriment of the community. She was part of an already broken system, and fell through the cracks like many kids do. She wasn't dealt a fair hand at life, but she does have free will and she unfortunately made the choice to kill someone. But she should still be held accountable for her actions.

Again, it is not determined by the breed, but how they are raised.

Would you say that a Malamute or toy poodle is as apt to be a good sheep herding dog as a Border Collie? Denying that specialized breeding for specific tasks causes inborn breed differences is just ridiculous, and yes, that applies to temperament, too. Pit bulls were specifically bred to be aggressive to other animals. A dog doesn't magically distinguish between a human and another dog, let alone a human and some other noncanine species. They are especially likely to view small children as prey. Just two days ago there was an article in my local paper about a newborn killed by the family dogs. One was a huskey and one was a pit bull; the police confiscated both. The genius mother (who at the age of 21 had two OTHER dogs locked up in the basement in addition to two other children, the oldest six), left the infant in a carrier seat on the floor with the dogs running loose while she went upstairs. She heard the baby scream, found blood around the dogs' mouths and called 911 but the baby was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.

Obviously no sane person leaves a baby unsupervised with ANY animal, even a rabbit, but isn't it interesting how certain breeds are so often involved in these tragedies? Yes, she was irresponsible but irresponsible people do gravitate to certain breeds. And who the heck needs FOUR dogs in the city? The sort of people who own breeds that are likely to get them sued are the same ones who like to own entire packs of dogs.

Read anything by a professional trainer, especially one who trains police dogs or guard dogs. Do you think you can take just any dog, a Golden Retriever, say, and train them to be aggressive? While there are aggressive Goldens, they were born that way,usually because they were bred by people who didn't know what they were doing. Professionals say you must test a dog, even a puppy, to see if it has any potential to be a guard dog. The same is true for any use. Many candidates for Seeing Eye dogs flunk out, for instance, even though they are very carefully raised as puppies by carefully trained volunteers.

Perhaps you are looking at this as if it were a form of "canine racism" but there is a huge difference. Dogs were deliberately bred to have specific traits and temperaments. Human beings were not, even in slave days.

Mastiffs were bred and trained to be not only war dogs, but to be in the pits against lions or bears. Thanks Romans for being so civilized. But you don't hear of them mauling anybody do you?

Dachshunds were bred to get badgers out of their lairs. Way to go Germany. These are one of the more popular breeds today to own as cute little dogs. My son was bitten by one of these dogs because the dog wanted his (my sons) hot dog. Also, this particular dog has bitten many other people as well.

Weimeraners were bred to hunt and take down large game i.e. wolves, wildcats, deer. You don't hear about them mauling anybody, do you?

Great Danes were also bred to hunt boars. Boars are ferocious animals. Ever hear of great danes mauling anybody?

Shiba Inu's were bred to hunt small game, but they also hunted boars and bears. Ever hear of them mauling anybody? I didn't think so.

Once again, all dogs, with a few exceptions, were bred originally to destroy or kill some sort of enemy. It is in their nature certainly, but unless it is encouraged in some way, dogs are generally docile.

Thanks for completely derailing the thread with your hatred and misunderstanding of dogs.

Kathryn, the charge she pled to comes with a required possibility of parole. However, parole boards have wide discretion. Even though she's young, the circumstances of the murder will VERY likely result in her being denied parole at all hearings. If I were a gambling person, I'd lay odds on her parents being at each and every hearing. Their testimony will likely sway any parole board member who entertained the idea of freeing her to keep her locked up.

She will get out of prison.

I agree, sometimes I feel they have better justice than we do. It's their equal rights that sucks.

A Judge once said that there is no Justice, just Law.

Good Idea, put her ass on the line.

If you feel they have better justice over there, by all means, GO LIVE THERE. You'll be back in 2 weeks, kissing the ground as you get off the plane.

You essentially made a case for Sharia Law. Can you imagine if a muslim came on here bragging about how great Sharia law would be FOR A 15 YEAR OLD CHILD? Imagine the reaction.

God Bless America and the Supreme Court that abolished the death penalty for CHILDREN.