Case Analysis of Andrea Yates Essay Example

In a world full of crime, some criminals do not receive justice. However, most offenders seek the proper justness they deserve. The Andrea Yates case, in particular, was one in which justice got served precisely how it should have been. Long before Yates had drowned her five children in their home bathtub, the severity of her mental health was well known by those who knew her. Faith McLellan, states, "what led up to her killing her children had been building for years." It had always been an issue, yet, nobody could ever seem to help Mrs. Yates in the ways she needed. Despite the several doctors and medications she had over time, it was not enough to prevent her from the overwhelming postpartum depression and psychosis she had suffered from for many years. The Andrea Yates case evokes all kinds of emotions. Disturbing, heartbreaking, and tragic for both Yates and her children. Although justice was eventually served in this case, too many people missed too many signs. Sadly, if Andrea Yate's family or doctors had acted earlier, Noah, John, Luke, Paul, and Mary would not have lost their lives that day. 

To understand Andrea Yates, one must understand her mental health and how significantly it impacted who she was as a person. According to Fionna Guy, "in the months prior to the murders, she was hospitalized twice for the severity of her symptoms with a formal diagnosis of postpartum psychosis being made." Postpartum psychosis is an intense mental disease that can occur in women after childbirth and can cause symptoms including delusional thinking, paranoia, and unusual behavior. With a diagnosis this severe and a previous past mental health history, it is clear that Andrea Yates was not in a state of sanity even before the killings occurred. Danielle Steel concludes, "But as surely as those children's lives were ended on that day, Andrea Yates' life as a normal, sane, rational person ended long before that as a result of her acute mental illness." Yates needed severe help, but no one was willing to accept her constant reach for treatment, which only led to the rapid decline of her mental health. Several hospitals and health care professionals failed Andrea Yates and prevented her from having the proper care she needed to move forward and progress mentally. Andrea Yates committed a heinous crime, but in the end, it is crucial to acknowledge Yate's psychological dysfunctions to comprehend what led her to kill her children. 

When it comes to receiving justice, Andrea Yates's first trial was the furthest thing from it. In 2002, the jurors saw Andrea Yates as a vicious killer and a woman they believed fit the description of someone sane. They also felt that Mrs. Yates understood the difference between right and wrong. Therefore, she knew that murdering her children was illegal, and they wanted to punish her for doing so. As a result, ten out of twelve jurors found Andrea Yates guilty, rejected the death penalty, and she was sentenced to life in prison without eligibility for parole for 40 years. This type of sentence was what the jurors wanted all along. They never wanted justice for Andrea Yates and her mental health; they only wanted her to seek punishment for what she did to her children because of her mental state. Yates's postpartum depression and psychosis were, again, overlooked by many people, and nobody seemed to recognize that this woman needed physiological help rather than a life sentence in prison. From the beginning, no one wanted to picture Andrea Yates as a beloved mother because it would seem odd to envision that someone who drowns their children is loving. The problem with that is she loved those children and only wanted to save them from what she thought was Satan. The first trial certainly did no justice for Andrea Yates. However, when it came time for the second trial, her call for assistance and justice would no longer be dismayed (O'Malley 200-206). 

If it had not been for the second trial in 2006, Andrea Yates would never be the woman she is today. The opportunity for justice would have been ripped from underneath her, and her mental health would surely not be at the level it is at decades later. During her second trial, life began to look up for Andrea Yates. Her case was now being listened to by a different set of jurors that focused less on putting her out to be a monster and more on doing what they thought was best for Yates in this situation. Individuals who were aware of the Andrea Yates case also began questioning whether the guilty verdict from the first trial was even fair. It did not take long for the jurors to agree that what Andrea Yates had done to the children was legally wrong, but in her mind, Yates believed what she was doing was right. And that is what caused jurors to decide that Andrea Yates was not guilty because of insanity. That one verdict changed Mrs. Yates's life for the better, and now she resides in Kerrville State Hospital in hopes that treatment will help her return to as normal as she can be from this point out. Had that second trial never occurred, Andrea Yates would be spending the rest of her life behind bars. While some may assume that life in prison is what she deserved, she never deserved what happened to her. Life in prison would have never served Yates or her children justice, but now that she has the support, medication, and therapy she needs, justice for Noah, John, Luke, Paul, Mary, and Andrea Yates is finally happening (Resnick 152-153). 

Although it is hard to believe, receiving justice over the very thing you fought hard for can change you mentally and psychically as a person. Obtaining assistance at the Kerrville State Hospital was in Mrs. Yates's best interest and was what she had been fighting for, for so long. Once Andrea Yate's mental health was listened to and acknowledged, the change within herself became apparent, and she was no longer the individual everyone portrayed her to be. Andrea Yates only ever wanted to overcome the delusions and mental diseases that distracted her from being the Andrea Yates everyone knew and loved. Catherine Townsend attests "she has received treatment and is doing well — and that she talks about her children, watches videos of her children, and 'grieves for her children every day.'” If someone believed that they were sane and did not need mental help, they would not be eager to make the change to better themselves. Andrea Yates, however, was not one of those people. Yates understood before and after the murders that she was ill and was in desperate need of assistance but lacked the right resources to assist her mental health from declining more and more. And that is what society failed to realize. Yates never wanted to hurt her children. She wanted peace and support during her hardships of postpartum depression and psychosis. Now that Andrea Yates has received the proper support, each year that her release is due for review, Yates waives the right because she has decided to continue with treatment to transform into a more mentally fit person (Margaritoff). 

The Andrea Yates case should have never been a case at all. Many precautions could have been taken to prevent the deaths of seven-year-old Noah, five-year-old John, three-year-old Luke, two-year-old Paul, and six-month-old Mary, but no one took Yates seriously enough before it was too late. The health care system and Andrea Yates' doctors dismissed her mental illnesses and disregarded every attempt she made at reaching out for help. The jurors at the first trial also had a tough time focusing on her mental state and were much more concerned about the children. Mainly because it is easier for society to look at a murderer and immediately assume they are wicked rather than acknowledging that nobody prevented the crime from happening at all. After the trial, Andrea Yates finally received the treatment she deserved, and the attention towards postpartum depression and psychosis expanded worldwide. According to Mark Moran, "Most people agreed that Andrea Yates was severely mentally ill, 'I think it brought much more awareness of mental illness, with specific reference to postpartum psychosis.'" Due to the unfortunate events caused by Andrea Yates, doctors and hospitals became much more invested in the mental state of new mothers to prevent what happened to Mrs. Yates from happening to others. 

In terms of Andrea Yates, justice was served. Although she should have received the proper care years before, her case allowed her and thousands of other women to be heard and helped. Did her mental health justify the murder of her five children? No. But it certainly did not help. Society views Andrea Yates as a monster or a cold-blooded killer, but in reality, all she wanted was someone to hear her cry for help. Now that Yates has been residing in Kerrville State Hospital, her mental health has increased, and she wants to continue to progress. Andrea Yates has opened eyes everywhere to the dangers of mental diseases; now, patients like Andrea Yates will have a better chance of obtaining assistance instead of winding up in the situation Yates did. Terri Langford writes, "Yates’ struggle with the illness and the lack of awareness of the condition left an impact on her attorney, George Parnham, and his wife, Mary Parnham. The two have worked with Puryear to educate patients and medical professionals about how to identify postpartum depression and the more serious postpartum psychosis." Unfortunately for Yates, she will spend the rest of her life in a facility for the murders of her children, but George Parnham claims that Andrea Yates is happy in this facility and is right where she needs to be (Helling). Andrea Pia Yates was a woman who loved her children deeply. She never hated them or wanted them dead; the delusions and depression did. All Andrea Yates ever wanted was justice from the beginning, but when justice came, it came too late.