Betty Broderick up for parole--should she go free?

[Laurie]

For those of you unfamiliar with the story:

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/01/21/california.betty.broderick.parole/index.html?hpt=C2

My opinion is nope--she is one bitter pill to swallow

 

[Spoof]

Wow. Nope for me either.

"The part that nobody sees is it was already five years later on the timeline," Sachs said. "She's getting 16 grand a month and a nice house in La Jolla, and it's time to move on."

And she lost custody of all four children. It isn't often a mother looses that, there must be a lot more to it.

 

[AZChins]

She's a murderer. Ick.

 

[mishellyshel]

i saw this story on one of those crime specials.
i do not think she should go free. bitter betty

 

[CommonYak]

I can't see how one could reasonably defend her. Keep her in jail; society doesn't need people who are willing to kill just because they are upset and in the heat of passion. Her being upset -- or furious as the case may be -- should never lead to someones death.

Although her husband apparently left her for a younger woman, and that was certainly nasty of him, her response was so out of proportion it is ridiculous. She should have just left him, gotten over him, and had a happy life elsewhere.

I just read some more details, and it seems like the facts of the case are somewhat muddy. "She said Dan Broderick abused her and then used his legal connections to crush her as their marriage broke up." This makes me wonder what really happened there. It certainly doesn't excuse her killing anyone, but it gives me pause and makes me think that maybe things weren't so black and white. Spousal abuse can be frightening, and the article does not make clear what form this abuse took.

 

[menagerie]

I just read some more details, and it seems like the facts of the case are somewhat muddy. "She said Dan Broderick abused her and then used his legal connections to crush her as their marriage broke up." This makes me wonder what really happened there. It certainly doesn't excuse her killing anyone, but it gives me pause and makes me think that maybe things weren't so black and white. Spousal abuse can be frightening, and the article does not make clear what form this abuse took.

I don't believe it is as cut and dried as most people seem to think. Dan was a powerful man in San Diego, he had a lot of pull at the Bar Association. No local attorneys would represent Betty in the divorce for fear of upsetting him. This doesn't excuse her actions, however it does add to the big picture of what was going on. You never know what is going to make someone snap.

That article doesn't touch on much of the information that came out while her case was being tried. It was HUGE news here in San Diego.

As far as parole is concerned. I think it all comes down to how much progress she has made while in prison and how she presents herself to the parole board. Theoretically, the object of her problems is dead so she shouldn't pose a threat to society, as long as she's got her emotions and behavior under control. People who have committed more heinous crimes and pose a bigger threat to society are paroled all the time.

 

[Laurie]

I've followed this story from the beginning and Betty was so far over the edge it was unbelievable. It seemed (to me) proven in court that Dan was not abusive, and back in the day you could listen to the messages she left on his machine and they were just horrible. There is such a thing as mental abuse and believe me after listening to those messages it was a clear case of mental abuse.

Does Betty pose a threat to society? I don't know, does anyone ever know who does or doesn't? So perhaps she doesn't pose a threat to "us" or "society" but the fact the ruthlessly killed these two people should be enough to never let her free. She ripped the cord of the telephone from wall so Dan could not call for help while his lungs filled with blood and he suffocated to death. IMO she's lucky she did not get death for this--lucky her.

 

[shubbles]

I think if you take someones life that yours should be taken also.

 

[Ash]

I think if you take someones life that yours should be taken also.

You might want to rephrase that statement. If you take someone's life for petty reasons your life should be taken also.

 

[Sandi]

She was denied parole.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/01/21/california.betty.broderick.parole/index.html?hpt=T2

 

[Laurie]

Excellent, Poor--poor, Betty!

 

[3CsMommy]

Good. My age will be showing here, but I remember this vaguely as one of those background noises that turned into a serious conversation with my father when the Nightly News with Peter Jennings was on. I thought, even then, that she belongs in jail, or at least in mandatory psychological counseling, and I stick by that now. Granted I understand it from a very different perspective than I had when I was 8, but the fact remains that she flew WAAAAAAY off the handle and took her childrens' father away from them permanently. Not someone I want to see out of a prison ever again.

 

[Spoof]

I like how they didn't bother rewriting the article - they just added a paragraph a few down. Yeesh.

15 years later and she shows no remorse, and "didn't even try". That's serious.

 

[tunes]

She actually sounds like she would be better off in a mental hospital than a prison. I read the article you posted, then dug deeper, and the woman has serious mental issues. I highly doubt she will ever admit that what she did was wrong because she's not capable of it.

The next time she's up for parole, about the only thing she'll be a threat to is a bedpan, so I'd guess they might consider letting her out then.

 

[Laurie]

Peggy I totally agree with you (no big shock there!) She clearly has mental instability issues although I'm sure she would never admit to it or agree to testing on that issue.

Women everywhere get dumped for a girl half their age--heck I was, did I go out and kill Jeff and Jamie--nope, although I did want to put marbles in his gas tank. There is a line you just don't cross and she crossed it. She's lucky she did not get the death penalty for this, she certainly deserves it.