Chapter III: Reality Hits Hard
Saturday October 29, 1988
It was 11:00 a.m. when the family arrived at the law office. They were greeted by Mr. Monroe himself, who was quickly recognized. He was no stranger to the local news media. His face and accomplishments, were always in the news. He projected an aura of true genuineness, and understanding. If you were a local, you would immediately recognize him, if you crossed paths on the street.
Wanting everyone to relax and feel at ease, the family was directed to a nearby room that had a calming atmosphere, complete with a fireplace, and comfortable seating. Mr. Monroe then proceeded to individually introduce himself as Bobby, to everyone in the room. As he was stating he preferred to be addressed as Bobby, when not in court, a young lady came in and offered everyone a beverage.
Wasting no time, he got right to the reason for this meeting. “I have been monitoring the situation since day one, when your sister, daughter, or wife, and the boys were first reported missing. I was impressed how the family contacted, and convinced law enforcement not to wait 24 hours to file, and broadcast a missing persons’ report. Your initiative, is what prompted me to take an interest in the case. Having experience with similar situations, I knew there was a possibility the situation would not end well, and become a challenging ordeal, the family would have to deal with.”
Looking around the room at everyone, he continued; “Most likely, Alana is going to be charged with two counts of first-degree murder. Once the case goes to trial, there has to be a verdict, or a mistrial. Without going into a lot of confusing legal details right now, regarding verdicts, I will point out what your goal should be. What you are about to face, is far beyond any ordinary case, and the only acceptable verdict you would want, is an NCR, which means Not Criminally Responsible.”
Continuing, he explained why the NCR finding would be so important. “The law can be very complex when dealing with mental disorders as a defense. Any other verdict, such as guilty, or that she is mentally unfit to stand trial or even a not guilty by reason of insanity, would be disastrous. Either one of those verdicts, could lead to lifelong consequences, making her a permanent ward of the state. An NCR finding, would place her in a hospital for the criminally insane, with no set minimum, or maximum sentencing. Depending on her mental status, she would automatically have the right to file a petition for release, if her mental status warranted one. Depending on the hospital’s recommendation, the release could be either conditional or non-conditional.”
Impressed with Mr. Monroe’s knowledge and insight of the situation, Ken asked him what his fee would be, to handle this case? Responding, he stated in cases like this, he would work with the family, letting them arrive at a figure based on their financial means. Ken then asked if they could have a few minutes in privacy, to discuss the matter.
Recapping everything that Mr. Monroe had outlined, everyone was comfortable with his knowledge, and what seemed like a genuine compassion towards the situation. More important, they all thought he was as passionate as they were, that Alana should be found not criminally responsible.
Summoning him back to the room, Ken informed him it was a unanimous decision, he was the right person for the job. Accepting the case, he made sure everyone understood going forward, all activities and statements made to the press, or law enforcement, must go through his office first. He also wanted the family to agree to a judge trial, and not a jury trial. He pointed out, testimony from expert witnesses, who have had specific clinical and judicial experience dealing with postpartum mental disorders, especially psychosis, can be too technical and overwhelming for the average juror to comprehend. He then stated; “Ideally, we would want an intelligent, sitting judge, to present the arguments and facts to.” Relying on the lawyer’s experience, the family accepted his reasoning.
Not wasting any time, and executing his first official act as Alana’s attorney, he immediately contacted the arresting officials, to let them know he would be representing her. During the call, he informed them he would be arriving there, by air, on Monday, and would let them know the approximate time of arrival, after making the arrangements for the flight. Meanwhile, citing some sort of legal precedent, he stated Alana was to be remanded at the hospital she was at, until further notice.
Monday October 31, 1988
Weather wise, it was a relatively calm day. Hopefully the flight to their destination, would be an uneventful one. As Ken took his seat, and looked out the window of the twin engine Cessna he was sitting in, a sense of reality suddenly became overwhelming. Here he was, on a plane with his sister’s husband, her psychologist, and a lawyer, whom they had recently hired.
They were about to embark on a flight to a small rural community, that was a distant 135 miles away. As the plane started down the runway and began its ascent, he wondered to himself, why this place? What unforeseen reason could she have had for going there. Of all the many different places the family, friends and police had searched, checking hotels and motels, it never crossed anyone’s mind she would take the kids so far.
During the flight, and the annoying loud roar of the twin engines, he kept thinking to himself; Is this actually real?
Experiencing what seemed like a memory flashback, he clearly remembered when she was born. He was eleven years old. Naturally, he wanted a little brother, while everyone else seemed to want another girl. Either case, he just thought it would be so neat to be an older brother, and he was going to be the best older brother he could be. However, as the plane took to the sky and headed towards their destination, he couldn’t help but wonder what it was he missed, causing the reason for this trip. Was he a complete failure of his personal quest? Was he not the best older brother, he had so wanted to be? Regardless, his original desire no longer mattered. What he had to do now is recognize, and accept the reality of the consequences his sister was facing, and be even more determined not to fail her again. The challenge now was no longer just about her illness and treatment. The challenge now, was about her judicial fate.
Collecting his thoughts, Ken realized her strange behavior had started as far back as February, when she was treated as an inpatient at a well-known hospital. He also recalled the friction between him and the doctors, regarding exactly what type of mental disorder she was being treated for. Consistently contradicting the family’s thought that she could be suffering from a severe postpartum mental disorder, the lead psychiatrist insisted there was no difference in the treatment for severe clinical depression, and postpartum depression. Remembering what occurred back then, when she was being released from the hospital, he regretted not questioning the doctor as to why he did not question her more, when he asked her if she ever had any thoughts of hurting herself, or the boys. The way Ken and other family members saw it, the Doctor did nothing to challenge her reply of “No”, eliminating any suspicion she was being deceptive.
As the plane continued its flight to the destination, Bobby, hoping to gain more of a perspective of the events leading up to the reason for this flight, began questioning everyone on the plane.
A disturbing revelation was discovered during the questioning, contradicting what the doctors at the hospital had originally told the family, regarding Alana’s treatment. During his direct questioning of Dr. Wainwright, the psychologist, the Doctor openly admitted he was unaware the patient could have been suffering from a postpartum disorder. Her hospital release papers, detailing her stay and treatment in the psychiatric ward back in February, only indicated she had been treated for ordinary clinical depression, with no indication she had any thoughts of harming herself, or her two boys. That diagnostic medical conclusion, did not coincide with the tragedy that has occurred.
Ken clearly remembered the meeting that took place on the day of her mandatory release back in March, due to the limitations of her insurance coverage. As his memory flashback continued, he began to tear up. Bobby, noticing his tears, comforted him and told him to take a deep breath. “We will be landing soon.” As he continued; “I suggest before going to the hospital, we stop for some coffee or something, and relax a bit.” Everyone thought it was a welcoming, and wise suggestion.
Except for Bobby, and maybe Dr. Wainwright, no one else on board knew how to prepare themselves for what they were about to face, or how to deal with it. Of all the things a person might think of preparing for, this certainly was not one of them.