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Thomas Belanger Doesn’t Like Therapy

February 7, 2008 at 9:12 am by  

Thomas Belanger Doesnt Like Therapy

North Andover, Mass. - Diruhi Mattian was making a therapeutic house call last night when things went very wrong. A little after 6 p.m., someone from Thomas Belanger’s apartment called 911. Belanger, 18, had stabbed his psychotherapist in the torso and then attempted to slit his own throat. Mattian, 53, was pronounced dead a short time later. Belanger is in the hospital and is expected to survive.

Diruhi Mattian was director of the Lawrence FLEX program, which is funded by the state Department of Mental Health Child and Adolescent Services. Its website says that “The services are primarily aimed at keeping the children safely at home with their families, in their community, out of residential programs and away from hospital care.” Mattian, a licensed clinical social worker, also ran her own non-profit organization called Aved Therapy that dealt mainly with panic and anxiety-based disorders.

Investigators working the scene are focusing their attention in an area between the living room and kitchen of the small apartment, which is listed under the names Elaine and Cassandra Belanger. Cassandra Belanger, Thomas’ sister, was at home at the time of the killing and is the likely 911 caller. Police have also taken a computer from the home and towed two vehicles from the scene, a white Toyota Corolla and a white Chevrolet sedan with Jesus and pro-life stickers.

Belanger has been formally charged with murder and is expected to be arraigned sometime today.

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43 Comments

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    • AshKristen

      Another unsuccessful suicide attempt. He deserves to suffer, and not get off that easy.

    • AshKristen

      Another unsuccessful suicide attempt. He deserves to suffer, and not get off that easy.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

    • http://dreamindemon.com/ impqueen

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

      I’ve got that one too, Morb, but I just dunno if that’s him. Think we should link it anyway, or wait?

    • http://dreamindemon.com/ impqueen

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

      I’ve got that one too, Morb, but I just dunno if that’s him. Think we should link it anyway, or wait?

    • http://dreamindemon.com/ impqueen

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

      I’ve got that one too, Morb, but I just dunno if that’s him. Think we should link it anyway, or wait?

    • http://dreamindemon.com impqueen

      I am pretty sure I got his Myspace, but I cannot verify. It’s pretty easy to find the one I am talking about. Same area, same name, same age.

      I’ve got that one too, Morb, but I just dunno if that’s him. Think we should link it anyway, or wait?

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      It doesn’t reveal anything spectacular anyway. I’d wait. Besides, the only thing it will be good for is a picture of him, if it is him.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      It doesn’t reveal anything spectacular anyway. I’d wait. Besides, the only thing it will be good for is a picture of him, if it is him.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      It doesn’t reveal anything spectacular anyway. I’d wait. Besides, the only thing it will be good for is a picture of him, if it is him.

    • Hippiepoet

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

    • Hippiepoet

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

    • Hippiepoet

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

    • Hippiepoet

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

    • WryBread

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

      Excellent chance of that. Noncompliance is a huge problem. I would rather see the money spent on this FLEX program spent on long-term residential care for people who need it.

    • WryBread

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

      Excellent chance of that. Noncompliance is a huge problem. I would rather see the money spent on this FLEX program spent on long-term residential care for people who need it.

    • WryBread

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

      Excellent chance of that. Noncompliance is a huge problem. I would rather see the money spent on this FLEX program spent on long-term residential care for people who need it.

    • WryBread

      Let me guess, he stopped taking his medications?

      Excellent chance of that. Noncompliance is a huge problem. I would rather see the money spent on this FLEX program spent on long-term residential care for people who need it.

    • nuberius

      The problem with the ones that require meds is this:

      Off meds they are sick.
      On meds they are well.
      Sick people need meds.
      Well people don’t.
      They aren’t sick “now”.
      They don’t need their meds.
      Only sick people take meds.

    • nuberius

      The problem with the ones that require meds is this:

      Off meds they are sick.
      On meds they are well.
      Sick people need meds.
      Well people don’t.
      They aren’t sick “now”.
      They don’t need their meds.
      Only sick people take meds.

    • nuberius

      The problem with the ones that require meds is this:

      Off meds they are sick.
      On meds they are well.
      Sick people need meds.
      Well people don’t.
      They aren’t sick “now”.
      They don’t need their meds.
      Only sick people take meds.

    • WryBread

      Off meds they are sick.On meds they are well.Sick people need meds.Well people don’t.They aren’t sick “now”.They don’t need their meds.Only sick people take meds.

      You got it. And lots of these people are not so well on meds that they don’t need help remembering to take them.

    • WryBread

      Off meds they are sick.On meds they are well.Sick people need meds.Well people don’t.They aren’t sick “now”.They don’t need their meds.Only sick people take meds.

      You got it. And lots of these people are not so well on meds that they don’t need help remembering to take them.

    • WryBread

      Off meds they are sick.On meds they are well.Sick people need meds.Well people don’t.They aren’t sick “now”.They don’t need their meds.Only sick people take meds.

      You got it. And lots of these people are not so well on meds that they don’t need help remembering to take them.

    • mytidbit

      My heart bleeds for the pain everyone is suffering.
      Please be kind and pray for everyone involved. He will get the help he needs now. The only flaw is that after a certain age you don’t get the services that you need. Society has us looking down on people that need meds and that makes them feel worse.
      People that help others are always in danger and need to be thanked more. This is just one case that went bad, They help so many.
      Thomas is a gentle soul that has been troubled for a long time.

    • mytidbit

      My heart bleeds for the pain everyone is suffering.
      Please be kind and pray for everyone involved. He will get the help he needs now. The only flaw is that after a certain age you don’t get the services that you need. Society has us looking down on people that need meds and that makes them feel worse.
      People that help others are always in danger and need to be thanked more. This is just one case that went bad, They help so many.
      Thomas is a gentle soul that has been troubled for a long time.

    • mytidbit

      My heart bleeds for the pain everyone is suffering.
      Please be kind and pray for everyone involved. He will get the help he needs now. The only flaw is that after a certain age you don’t get the services that you need. Society has us looking down on people that need meds and that makes them feel worse.
      People that help others are always in danger and need to be thanked more. This is just one case that went bad, They help so many.
      Thomas is a gentle soul that has been troubled for a long time.

    • mytidbit

      My heart bleeds for the pain everyone is suffering.
      Please be kind and pray for everyone involved. He will get the help he needs now. The only flaw is that after a certain age you don’t get the services that you need. Society has us looking down on people that need meds and that makes them feel worse.
      People that help others are always in danger and need to be thanked more. This is just one case that went bad, They help so many.
      Thomas is a gentle soul that has been troubled for a long time.

    • ab

      His 16 year-old sister witnessed the stabbing:

      The Belanger family appeared to have been under a great deal of stress, the Herald has learned. Thomas Belanger’s single mother Elaine, 47, a cosmetologist, filed a plea last June in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to be forgiven $76,500 in student loans after she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Her financial crisis and her illness, she claimed in court documents, “adversely affected the lives and health of” her two children.

      According to a North Andover police report, Elaine Belanger was in the hospital Wednesday night when Mattian made her house call. Thomas Belanger and his sister Cassandra were quarreling, so the social worker called their aunt Jean Putnam to come and stay with them. Putnam showed up hours later, only to tell Mattian she was going to leave with Cassandra because she “did not feel safe staying in the apartment” with Thomas, police said.

      In September 2002, a law enforcement source told the Herald, Thomas Belanger, then 14, was involved in an episode that led to multiple charges of assault with a knife and a fire extinguisher, as well as assault on a public official. The charges, part of a sealed juvenile record, were later dismissed, the source said.

    • ab

      His 16 year-old sister witnessed the stabbing:

      The Belanger family appeared to have been under a great deal of stress, the Herald has learned. Thomas Belanger’s single mother Elaine, 47, a cosmetologist, filed a plea last June in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to be forgiven $76,500 in student loans after she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Her financial crisis and her illness, she claimed in court documents, “adversely affected the lives and health of” her two children.

      According to a North Andover police report, Elaine Belanger was in the hospital Wednesday night when Mattian made her house call. Thomas Belanger and his sister Cassandra were quarreling, so the social worker called their aunt Jean Putnam to come and stay with them. Putnam showed up hours later, only to tell Mattian she was going to leave with Cassandra because she “did not feel safe staying in the apartment” with Thomas, police said.

      In September 2002, a law enforcement source told the Herald, Thomas Belanger, then 14, was involved in an episode that led to multiple charges of assault with a knife and a fire extinguisher, as well as assault on a public official. The charges, part of a sealed juvenile record, were later dismissed, the source said.

    • ab

      His 16 year-old sister witnessed the stabbing:

      The Belanger family appeared to have been under a great deal of stress, the Herald has learned. Thomas Belanger’s single mother Elaine, 47, a cosmetologist, filed a plea last June in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to be forgiven $76,500 in student loans after she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Her financial crisis and her illness, she claimed in court documents, “adversely affected the lives and health of” her two children.

      According to a North Andover police report, Elaine Belanger was in the hospital Wednesday night when Mattian made her house call. Thomas Belanger and his sister Cassandra were quarreling, so the social worker called their aunt Jean Putnam to come and stay with them. Putnam showed up hours later, only to tell Mattian she was going to leave with Cassandra because she “did not feel safe staying in the apartment” with Thomas, police said.

      In September 2002, a law enforcement source told the Herald, Thomas Belanger, then 14, was involved in an episode that led to multiple charges of assault with a knife and a fire extinguisher, as well as assault on a public official. The charges, part of a sealed juvenile record, were later dismissed, the source said.

    • ab

      Sad history for Thomas:

      Gallagher confirmed reports that Belanger suffers from severe bipolar disorder and has a history of hospitalizations, suicide attempts and psychiatric lockdowns at Lawrence General Hospital. Attorney James Krasnoo said his client’s illness is rooted in physical and sexual abuse from his father when he was very young, which at one point resulted in extreme head trauma from having his head smashed on the ground. At 3, while the father was in jail, his mother ran away with he and his sister to escape the abuse and legally changed their name, reports say. Belanger would later attend Lighthouse School in North Chelmsford that works with youth with a variety of disabilities.

    • ab

      Sad history for Thomas:

      Gallagher confirmed reports that Belanger suffers from severe bipolar disorder and has a history of hospitalizations, suicide attempts and psychiatric lockdowns at Lawrence General Hospital. Attorney James Krasnoo said his client’s illness is rooted in physical and sexual abuse from his father when he was very young, which at one point resulted in extreme head trauma from having his head smashed on the ground. At 3, while the father was in jail, his mother ran away with he and his sister to escape the abuse and legally changed their name, reports say. Belanger would later attend Lighthouse School in North Chelmsford that works with youth with a variety of disabilities.

    • waterlily

      I knew this kid and he was very sweet and had a lot of family issues, both him and his sister. He worked at a summer camp for children and seemed to enjoy it from what I saw.

    • waterlily

      I knew this kid and he was very sweet and had a lot of family issues, both him and his sister. He worked at a summer camp for children and seemed to enjoy it from what I saw.

    • waterlily

      I knew this kid and he was very sweet and had a lot of family issues, both him and his sister. He worked at a summer camp for children and seemed to enjoy it from what I saw.

    • waterlily

      I knew this kid and he was very sweet and had a lot of family issues, both him and his sister. He worked at a summer camp for children and seemed to enjoy it from what I saw.

    • Lost

      There is no way this kid could be characterized as “sweet.”

      He killed my best friend. He stabbed and MURDERED her.

      My father beat me as a child. He raped me over and over again over a period of SEVEN YEARS. He suffered from bipolar disorder, as do I, but if I had a child I wouldn't go out and find random men to hold my daughter down, sexually abuse her, and burn her with lit cigarettes when she tried to DEFEND herself!

      I am SO FLIPPING TIRED OF PEOPLE USING BIPOLAR DISORDER AS AN EXCUSE!! I have it, and I've been diagnosed for over 5 years now! But you don't see me bringing physical harm, and in this case DEATH to innocent people!

      Shame on you for defending such a monster.

    • anonymous

      this child was emotionally and mentally abused by his mother, his mother left his father when he was about 3 and his sister was an infant, he developed bipolar beacuse of the abuse and reliving the trauma through his mothers whispers at night and her perceptions, why would you tell a 3 yr old what happened if he didn't even know to begin with, all of those who protected her are jsut as guilty, she is a catholic attends church and cries pitty just to be forgiven, that is true evil, he needed to be in a residietnail home or with a family that would love him not with a mother who continued to traumatize him and abuse him, and while this was happening his mother was int he hospital because “she fell on ice” and was badly bruised…???nobody knows the truth pain and hurt this child has gone through, why don't you ask him!

    • darich

      Why did he kill the therapist? She was only trying to help him. His mother didn't kill anyone.

    • darich

      I looked this guy up. In Sept 09 he was declared competent to stand trial. His defense will be insanity (of course) at the time of the crime. There was a picture of this guy and I gotta say he just looked plain old mean and evil. He needs to be kept away from society.