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Man Shoots Wife Of 70 Years In What Family Call A Mercy Killing

November 22, 2010 at 9:11 am by  

SEAL BEACH, Calif. — Police have arrested an 88-year-old man after they say he shot his wife 86-year-old wife in the head inside a nursing home, a month before their 70th anniversary. Roy Charles Laird had reluctantly admitted his wife, Clara Laird,  into the Country Villa Healthcare Center after her failing health and decline into dementia. The couple both resided at the retirement community of Leisure World for twenty years, where Roy refused to hire help for his wife as she slid further into dementia, instead feeding and bathing her himself. But Clara took a turn for the worse three months ago and was no longer able sit in a wheelchair or recognize the people around her. After being admitted into Country Villa, Roy would still visit her three times a day and spoon-feed her meals. Until this past Sunday when police responded to the facility after a report of shots fired. They would find Clara dead in her room after having been shot in the head. Roy was also there, sitting in the room with a .38 caliber revolver in his pocket. He was taken into custody. “Her mind was gone,” the couple’s daughter, 68-year-old Kathy Palmateer told the Times. “It was a mercy killing.” She also added her father had discussed other men who had killed their ailing wives and then themselves, but never indicated it was anything he would ever do.

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    • insatiabldesire

      RT @dreamindemon: Man Shoots Wife Of 70 Years In What Family Call A Mercy Killing – http://www.dreamindemon.com/2010/11/22/m…

    • Proud Wife

      On one hand, this is sweet, but on the other hand, very disturbing. I understand why he killed his wife, I know that I wouldn’t want to live if my mind was gone……

    • BuyTheFarm

      They need to take his gun away and let him go back to the nursing home or to his family. I am sure if he had the means of doing it in a less violent way, he’d have chosen that approach. Sad.

    • behemoth

      If we live long enough Alzheimers will effect 1 in 85 of us by year 2050. I hope and pray my wife does not think she will be doing me a favor by putting a 9mm through my thick skull. It will probably bounce off and hit a vase and ricochet hitting Mrs. Kennedy in the leg and we will be held liable.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      I pray that someone would do something like this for me if I am suffering from dementia. Not the eating or shitting my pants part, cause that would be hilarious. But the dementia part. Fuck that.

      But I do ask that Jaded is not left in charge of me in my old age. I would simply ask where she put the keys so I could put gas in the car and she’d yell “mercy killing!” before blowing my brains out.

    • John Q. Public

      This guy is not a threat to society. He was obviously dedicated to his now diseased wife. He none-the-less committed murder and society has a duty to investigate fully even if that means a court trial.

      I do wonder that if a spouse is so dedicated to an ailing spouse that he/she is willing to commit a mercy killing, why does he/she no commit suicide also?

    • http://www.myspace.com/498482431 Parrot Toes

      I can not dislike this man for this. He was obviously devoted to his wife to have cared for her all these years and that only means that he truly loved her. He did what he did out of love. Most of us only HOPE to be loved by someone to this degree in our dreams.

    • SatanEatsCheeseWhiz

      We euthanize our [sick] pets because it’s ‘humane’ but make it a crime if it’s a human suffering. If ‘Death with Dignity’ was legal, he wouldn’t have had to use a gun.

    • BuyTheFarm

      Morbid, are you afraid to let Jaded bathe you and wipe your ass??

    • Abroad

      @BuyTheFarm: Wouldn’t you be? :-P

    • BuyTheFarm

      Nah. Jaded wouldn’t hurt a fly.

    • deadskinmask213

      I would hope that someone would put me out of mine and my families misery if i get alzheimers or dementia. Sure the first stages i can handle. It’s the stages that require medical assistance and drooling I can’t take. We need doctor assisted suicide so that you can prepare for this before you get to those stages. Jack Kevorkian was doing gods work helping those who were suffering. Now I’m not a fan of any religion I’m just saying he was on the right track helping people and their families physically and financially. Hospitalization bankrupts famlies and most of the time the patient would rather be dying at home anyway. There really isn’t any good way to look at this topic but it is something that we may have to face going forward. Changes need to be made to give people an option to get out before they are suffering and the hospital starts raping their family just to house their empty husk. I for one would not like to put my family through that. My papa has a .38 and he has always told me if it got that bad he would just end it himself. I believe him because he only owns one bullet.

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Morbid

      @BuyTheFarm: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA *takes deep breath* AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

    • http://www.dreamindemon.com Jaded

      @BuyTheFarm: Ain’t. Happening.

    • BuyTheFarm

      ROFLOL, Looks like Morbid is gonna have to wipe his own booty!

      @deadskinmask, not so sure about dying at home. Wouldn’t bother me but I am thinking it would be easier for my fam if I was in a hospital. Memories, etc. Besides, I want to be way over medicated as I drift into the eternal sleep.

      I don’t intend to ever live in a nursing home though so not sure how I am going to get all that worked out. Like your grandpa, remmington 44 mag, I suppose.

    • deadskinmask213

      @BuyTheFarm: Yeah that would be the best conclusion. He has told me that since I was 14 when I found the gun and asked him about why he had it. Thats what I get for snooping it was well hidden. But yeah like I said though there really is no good way at looking at it.

    • deadskinmask213

      @Morbid: Morbid I have the song Holy Wars…The Punishment Due stuck in my head now. Here I was thinking about the pain this man was going through and thinking about how long my wife and I have been apart of eachothers lives then all of a sudden I start hearing Dave screaming MERCY KILLING, MERCY KILLING, KILLING,KILLING,KILLING… in my head. Great song bad timing lol.

    • VXIII

      at least some of us have the balls to follow through, I look at this old mans face and I can feel his distrust, he dont need to be in jail, but nothing will ever make him smile again, I admire this man, Im not one to give platititudes but blessings to you old man, know you willl never find peace but some of us get it…

    • VXIII

      I only hope someone does this for me when the time comes… sad old man, I send you a hug…

    • litttlemoonseductress

      @John Q. Public:

      I do wonder that if a spouse is so dedicated to an ailing spouse that he/she is willing to commit a mercy killing, why does he/she no commit suicide also?

      In most religions it is the belief that if you kill someone you can ask for forgiveness and be forgiven, if you kill yourself there is no salvation for the simple fact that you cannot ask for forgiveness. That would be my honest guess here.

    • XenMojo

      It must have been heartbreaking for him to see her that way. She was 16 and he was 18 when they married, I don’t blame him for wanting to give her peace. Being that he did it in a public facility, I don’t know if he will be able to completely get away with it.

    • LolitaBaeta

      Could you imagine the mind set this poor man was in how fucked up a choice like that would be… Fuck… just reading it messes with my mind a bit(which is rare lol) because someone you dedicated your life to is suffering. You become sort of like one person when you’re married that long(not to get too deeply sentimental or anything)so in a way he killed himself as well. What a dark place for him to be in right now they need to just leave him be let his family take care of him now because they basically lost two people.