Why Kids Kill Parents

A tragic portrait of adolescents who kill their parents is revealed in this volume: these young people almost always kill out of desperation as they are almost always victims of severe child abuse, neglect and dysfunctional parenting.

Drawing upon her experience as a clinician, expert witness and scholar, the author asserts that a combination of interconnected problems creates the conditions for parricide, including: severe sexual, physical and//or verbal abuse of the child; escalating violence in the family; and increasing vulnerability of the child to stressors in the home.

Dr. Heide is a Full Professor in the Department of Criminology at the University of South Florida, Tampa and is an internationally recognized consultant on adolescent homicide and family violence. She is a licensed mental health counselor in the State of Florida and has been court-appointed as an expert in Florida Circuit Courts in homicide, sexual battery, juvenile, and family matters. Dr. Heide's publication record includes more than 100 publications and presentations in the areas of adolescent homicide, family violence, personality assessment, and juvenile justice, along with two books - Why Kids Kill Parents (1992) and Young Killers (1999). She received her B.A. from Vassar College in Psychology and her M.A. and Ph.D in Criminal Justice from the State University of New York at Albany.