The Andrea Yates case explores the tragic intersection of severe mental illness, particularly postpartum psychosis and religious delusion, with a mother's horrific act of drowning her five children, raising profound questions about criminal responsibility, mental health treatment, and societal judgment.
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when the news about Andrea Yates broke
it shocked the nation How could a mother
have killed her five little children
Andrea Yates is the sickest woman I have
ever seen we never had a doubt that she
knew right from wrong never I was told
by people who saw in those days that
Andrea was a fabulous mother we hero
woried Andrea what were the forces that
led her to commit these horrible acts we
all go the hell yeah she didn't have any
ability to judge the rightness or
wrongness of what this preacher was
saying to her you are accountable for
those children no other people does God
single out than children and in her
world there was no other way out for her
children other than to send them to God
sometimes you just have to look at it
and call it what it is it's an evil act
corner [Music]
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on June 20th 2001 Houston Police
received a 911 call from a normally
to to come I need to know why we're coming
coming
ma' is he there standing next to you
me are you having a service are you ill
or what uh yes I'm Ill you need an
ambulance no I need a police
officer an ambulance Andrea Yates then
called her husband Rusty a project
manager at Nessa she said come home and
he said is anything wrong and she said
yes he said with the kids yes how many
she said all of them when two police
officers arrived at the house Andrea
confessed to her crimes the police
showed up at her door said what's the
problem she said I killed my [Music]
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children Andrea Yates had drowned her
five children her husband Rusty arrived
at the house shortly after the police
Rusty falls to the ground slams his
hands into the grass he then spent much
time going from window to door looking
in trying to see Andrea and saying
Andrea how could you do this how could
you do this I get a phone call from my
sister turn on the news turn on the news
and I just couldn't believe it I just
cannot imagine the Andrea that I knew
being capable of doing what she did to
her own kids that Andrea may try to hurt
the children I mean that never even
entered my mind not not my mind not my
mother's mind I don't believe any any of
the family's mind that that would ever
happen the officers led her out the back
door to avoid parad her past Rusty and
took her to police headquarters in
downtown Houston where they questioned
her after you drew the bath water what
was your intent what were you about to
do have the
children during the 17-minute confession
Andrea Yates detailed what she had done
this morning um what time was it that
you got out of bed this morning at
8:10 okay and who in your household was
awake at that time um my husband and
Mary and
Luke PA we knew she started with Paul
who was the middle child then she
proceeded with Luke killed him we knew
that she took John then from her
statement and drowned him put him in the
bed then she drowned Mary left Mary
floating in the tub when she summon Noah
the seven-year-old in there for anyone
to kill one child to see that this child
is is dead has died to have that
emotional effect and then go to the next
child it's it's just it's hard to even
imagine or put yourself in that person's
position how could anyone do that occurs
to you the next day Rusty shocked
Everyone by expressing sympathy for his
wife I mean I'm supportive of her it's
hard you know like I said because you
know I'm torn one one side of me you
know blames her because she you know she
did it you know but the other side of me
says well she didn't because that wasn't
her you know she she wasn't in a right
frame of mind and and uh I guess her she
had you know psychotic you know side
effects uh with her depression that uh
that led her to do this Rusty revealed
that Andrea had been battling a mental
illness leaving police and the public to
ponder whether she was a cold-blooded
killer or whether her actions were the
result of a severe mental disease the
only question she asked the whole time
was what are we going to plea what type
of plea whether guilty or not guilty and
she indicated that she did not want to
plea not guilty that she wanted to go
ahead and receive punishment because she
was a bad mother she was the sickest
person I've ever seen in my life um she
was not bathed she was dressed in this
orange jail outfit her shirt was falling
off of her she didn't have a bra her
hair was hanging in her face and she was
shaking she had eyes that when she
looked at you had no pupils it like
shark eyes she could answer questions
about what happened but any sort of
question about why or what's going on or
what you're doing it just sent her into an
an
immediate um Never Never Land my first
thought was this woman has postpartum
psychosis postpartum psychosis is a
severe form of depression that affects
one out of every thousand women after
giving birth usually the disorder takes
the form of a delusion and the horrible
tragedy of postpartum psychosis is that
the delusion is about the child in most
cases I've seen women who are afraid to
bathe their children for fear that
they'll drown them women who have had
thoughts of suffocating their children
really horrible horrible things while
Andrea's lawyers were preparing for an
insanity defense the state was gathering
evidence to prove that Andrea was
criminally responsible for her actions
Texas light years does the person have a
severe mental disease or defect and if
they do uh as a result of that severe
mental defect were they able to tell
that their actions were wrong that their
conduct was wrong at the time of the
offense we knew within a week that the
evidence was telling us that she knew
crime as people Gather in front of the
Yates house for a candlelight vigil 2
days after the murders public public
opinion about Andrea Yates was growing
stronger this was such a polarizing
event either people had sympathy for
Andrea and cared for her or they hated
her with every drop of blood in their
bodies there are people all over Houston
including most of the to show hosts who
would oh she knew what she was doing oh
she's just evil oh they're terrible
people um they just totally
discounted the fact that Andrea was very
very sick a week after the murders the
legal posturing and the public outrage
quieted down for the children's funeral
it was such a typical hot muggy
miserable Houston summer afternoon with
probably a 20% chance of rain it was so
hot and miserable every so often there
would be a little drop of water from the
trees almost like the trees were [Music]
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weeping I went to the uh the service at
the church but not to the burial it was
just a little too much for me to handle
I just wanted to think about my sister
and the children on my own Andrea was
undergoing a battery of psychiatric
exams she was put on anti-depressant and
anticho medication as she became more
stable she started to reveal disturbing
reasons for the murders what were you
trying to accomplish then when you did
take your children's
lives maybe in their their innocent
years God would take them up God would
take them up to be in heaven is that
what you mean all right and if you had
not taken their lives what did you think
would happen to
them I they were have continued
stumbling and where did they end up they
hope in Hell wanting to know what Andrea
meant by stumbling the psychiatrist then
asked her about her children's Behavior
what sort of things did they do which
showed you they weren't right well
he just did a lot of silly stuff and
didn't obey didn't obey you when you
told them to do things all right you
mentioned Their Manners before can you
give me an example of Their Manners [Music]
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this when russy's Mom would visit they would
would
um not Trad her will call her names be
disrespectful mhm
okay now you concluded that they were
not righteous and you're religious
person and explain to me what you meant
by not being righteous well they didn't
do thing go they didn't do things God
likes while Andrea's lawyers entered a
plea of Not Guilty by reason of insanity
the DA's office announced that they
would be seeking the death penalty if
this woman had gone into a neighbor's
house and killed her five children and
thought it was the best thing to do for
those children to save those children
because she felt those children weren't
being raised in the right way do you
think anyone would have have felt the
way they do what is it that you can as a
mother take the lives of your own
children and because it's so horrific
people just don't want to think that
that could be an evil
act 3 months after her arrest a jury
deemed Andrea Yates competent to stand trial
why so
nice we when we come back was there
something in yates's background that
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act Andrea Yates grew up in Houston
where she was the youngest of five
children of Andrew and Karen Kennedy she
was my best friend from 8th grade
through the end of college [Music]
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a lot of people when you're teenagers
you just think your oh your family just
is totally embarrassing and I never got
that from Andrea I mean she really was
pretty devoted to her parents she was
always wanting to help other people out
um elderly people in the
neighborhood just dried a lot of
satisfaction out of out of wanting to do
things for other people instead of
people doing things for her in high
school she was the captain of the swim
team the historian of the National Honor
Society and graduated valedictorian of
her senior class she wasn't satisfied
with um mediocre stuff she wanted things
to be excellent I don't know about
perfect but she valued Excellence after
graduating from the University of Texas
School of Nursing Andrea moved into an
apartment complex in the suburbs and
began dating I don't think anybody ever
would have pictured Andrea getting
married and having five kids cuz she
never dated she just never never dated
even once that I know of until we got
out of college Rusty Yates a computer
systems designer for NASA lived in the
same apartment complex he told his story
to author Susie Spencer the first time
he saw Andrea she was floating in the
swimming pool with her arms outstretched
almost like a cross and he was listening
to His Radio sitting by the pool just
watching her thinking I could never have
this woman she is too good Andrea
ignored Rusty that day but a few months
later it was she who made the first move
the couple dated for 3 years before
moving in together and eventually
marrying and Rusty told me that Andrea
did not like sex that she would dress in
the closet he thought that once they got
married it would be okay and Andrea
still was always uncomfortable with sex
and revealing her body after their
wedding Andrea continued working as a
nurse at a nearby hospital but before
the couple celebr celebrated their first
wedding anniversary Noah was born and
like many women Andrea was faced with a
critical decision whether or not to go
back to work there are many women who
will say over and over that Andrea
wanted to go back to work that she
really wanted to go into nursing again
and Rusty will say no she didn't we
talked about that I gave her the option
of going back to work and she said no
I'm a mom now that's all that matters
that's all I want to do what's the truth
I don't know because Andrea was a people
pleaser so I think she would agree with
whoever's talking at the moment I don't
think Andrea regarded it as a problem
that Rusty was the guy who would go to
work and and support them and she's the
one who would take care of the house and
she wanted that she wanted the ward and
June Cleaver kind of Lifestyle Andrea
quit her job and appeared to adapt well
to her role as a full-time
mother but defense psychiatrists m aain
that at the time something terrible was
happening to her she had thoughts or
visions of a knife and had thoughts
about stabbing someone in blood she
thought she heard Satan speak to her
after the birth of Noah Andrea decided
to keep the incident a secret and
therefore the beginning signs of her
illness went
undiagnosed Andrea had to be perfect the
perfect student the perfect daughter the
perfect nurse so she could not reveal to
anyone that she was having these Visions
but that's another typical Andrea thing
that she plays her cards close to the
vest if she doesn't feel like telling
hint is that right over the next four
years Andrea had two more Sons John and
Paul are you playing with those balloons
meanwhile Rusty and Andrea were
following the teachings of a fire and
brimstone Street pracher Rusty had met
in college God is going to destroy this
Earth and all you wred Sinners Michael
wari and his wife Rachel corresponded
with their followers mostly through
letters and videos the former college
football player and former cheerleader
were routinely in trouble with local
authorities for their aggressive
preaching style and ultimately left
their home state of Michigan to avoid [Music]
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prosecution oh crazy crazy no no no no
you crazy you
the couple took their Ministry on the
road and for three decades have traveled
across the US and 23 other countries
with their six children preaching their
own brand of Christianity on street
corners and at college campuses when I
first discovered that they were a part
of Michael War's system I knew exactly
that she went through what I went
through like Rusty David La Isa was in
college when he met Michael wari he
followed the preacher for 12 years
we all go to hell yes to hell in Mike's
teaching he constantly says that only a
few make it so the red light went off
with me and I started BEC very
suspicious at the notion that there's
many people who come to Salvation not
just a few as he teaches wari preached
an austere lifestyle and de la Isa
believes it is this instruction that
encouraged Rusty and Andrea to move from
their Bourbon House to a mobile home in
Campground our boys in the teachings of
Michael wari to hold a job and to even
live in a home is to participate in the
evil satanic conspiracy against God so
you know for Rusty to get his family in
this mobile home and to kind of emulate
this nomadic lifestyle comes directly
from the teachings of Michael wari by
the time Rusty and Andrea had their
third son it was Andrea who had
developed the stronger relationship with
the Waris corresponding regularly with
them then they see in a wari newsletter
that the Waris have a bus for sale a
used Greyhound bus Rusty and Andrea
bought the converted bus and downsized
again moving with their three young
children from their mobile home to the
350 square foot bus the small bus that
the children were being raised in
uh the amount of children back to back
to back one after another my mother and
I knew that it took its toll on my
sister meanwhile she was also helping to
care for her father who was suffering
from Alzheimer's the people at the RV
park will say we knew something was
wrong we were saying Rusty help her
Rusty will talk about that we had clear
lines of responsibility I was the bread
winner Andrea was to take care of the kids
kids
Andrea remained in contact with the
Waris you don't need to listen to
someone tell you hateful things he's
like a doctor he diagnoses your
spiritual state by what you write him he
encourages you to describe where you are
with God and then he responds back to
you in a Written Letter diagnosing and
picking out your flaws from the letters
I have that Rachel waren necki wrote to
Andrea it was you are evil you are
wicked you are a daughter of Eve who is
a wicked witch you know the window of
opportunity for us to minister to you is
closing you have to repent now Mike
believes that all women inherit a
witchcraft nature from Eve and have the
spirit of Jezebel so they should be the
servant of a man and man should have you
know dominance over the woman Jesus does
single out one group
children War's writings were
particularly judgmental when it came to
raising children he believes today's
mothers are too permissive modern mother
worldle was very very lazy all her
children drove her crazy the Bible told
her to spank and train them but Society
said she must never constrain them the
fruit of rebellion she did now see on
the day of judgment she will have no
plea modern mother worldly cast in hell
now What Becomes of the children of such
a jezebel this ties specifically with
Andrea and what Ru I think gave her the
notion that her kids are going to go to
hell What Becomes of the children of the
Jezebel shortly before her 35th Birthday
Andrea had her fourth child Luke here we
are on our way home here our tredition Luke
Luke
when Luke was 4 months old rusty got a
call similar to the one he would get the
day of the
murders Andrea calls Rusty at work and
says come home I need help so he runs
from NASA out to the RV park with the
350t bus walks in and says what's the
matter Andrea is sitting there chewing
her fingers not biting her fingernails
chewing her fingers her legs are
trembling her her arms are
help Andrea Yates had suffered a nervous
breakdown next on mug shots Andrea and
Rusty decide to get help but her descent [Music]
continues b c d e f g h i j k l m n o
oops p p
v w x y and z now I know my
abc want to come and play with me by the
summer of 1999 Andrea Yates life was in
turmoil she was caring for her ailing
father homeschooling her three older
boys and nursing her new infant all the
while living in a 350 square ft bus and
corresponding with the Waris but whoever
causes one of these little
ones who believe in me to stumble it is
better for him that a heavy
MST be hung around his neck and he be
drowned in the depth of the
sea I mean Jesus you're saying to kill
yourself yeah then two weeks before her
35th birthday Andrea suffered her
nervous breakdown Rusty does not know
what to do so he packs up Andrea and the
kids and takes them for a walk on the
beach in Galveston in the trial they
said why did you do this Rusty when your
wife is having a nervous pregnant he
said I didn't know what else to do which
I think is typical with mental illness
we don't know what to
do the next day Rusty took Andrea and
the kids to her mother's house that
afternoon Andrea took an overdose of her
father's sleeping pills and tried to
commit suicide totally shocked I I never
expected her to try that because she's
very very strong so something must have
really uh weakened her at some point to
suicide Andrea was rushed to a nearby
hospital and transferred to a
psychiatric unit where she was diagnosed
with a major depressive disorder the
hospital psychiatrist prescribed the
anti-depressant Zola
and she was there for about a week the
medical records show that she was
released because the insurance had run
out didn't matter whether she was well
or not but the insurance had run
out she was then referred to a Dr Eileen
starbranch a
psychiatrist Dr starbranch recommended
switching from the anti-depressant to
Zyprexa an anticho used for treating
bipolar Mania and schizophrenia Andrea
didn't want want to be on medications
for one thing Reverend War Nei believes
that medicines are bad that doctors are
bad so Andrea flushed this very
expensive zy praia down the
toilet Andrea Yates was developing a
pattern of not taking the medications
that could help control her illness she
did what was called cheeking she would
stick the the meds or medicines in her
cheek looked like she had taken them and
really hadn't and would later spit him
out Andrea was staying at her parents
house to recuperate scratching bald
spots on her head and picking sores on
her body she showed little signs of
recovering her condition continued to
deteriorate and as author Susie Spencer
learned she began to hallucinate
re-experiencing the vision she had after
her first son Noah was born she's having
a vision says get a knife get a knife
get a knife get a knife get a knife so
she ran and got a state knife from her
mother's house goes into the bathroom
and is holding it to her neck when Rusty
comes in going you know noticing Andrea
is missing where his sheet goes to the
bathroom and she's saying get back let
me do it let me do it please let me do
it and he wrestled the knife away from
her took her back into the hospital this
time Andrea was admitted to a private
center for psychiatric
treatment after an emergency dose of the
anticho drug hll Andrea loosened up and
confessed to the doctors that she
suffered the knife Vision as many as 10
times in several days and feared her
Visions predicted
violence when she went back into the
hospital at this point she had claw
marks on her legs where she had been
trying to hold herself back from hurting
anyone and she was trying to save her
Children's Life by taking her own life
about 50% of women with postpartum
psychosis go on to be diagnosed uh with
bipolar disorder or manic depressive
illness the psychiatrist at the
treatment center diagnosed Andrea with a
major depressive disorder that was
severe and recurrent with psychotic
features in Andrea Yates case after
looking at all the medical records and
getting some psychological testing
speaking to her family she'd probably
had it for a very long time but her
symptoms were not so severe that she
wasn't standing on the street corner
speaking to her self as Andrea's mother
and siblings began discussing her
condition they admitted their own
struggles with depression and learned
that a majority of the family had sought
professional help women who have
relatives with manic depressive illness
are at a much greater risk for having
postpartum psychosis the psychiatrist
recommended electric shock treatments
but Rusty and Andrea decided against it
so after three weeks in the Psychiatric
Center Andrea was released with
prescriptions for an arsenal of drugs
including the anti-depressants of fexer
and Wellbutrin and the antipsychotic
hdll she continued monthly visits with
do starbranch I really don't think my
sister's children completely understood
um I think that they knew that their
mother was sick and needed to get some
help but uh they all missed their mother
because she was gone quite a bit during
that summer after Andrea attempted
suicide Mrs Kennedy went to Rusty and
said Rusty no more but get Andrea a
house so it was while she was in the
hospital in 1999 that he went out and
bought the house in Clear Lake and in
September she was at home in their new
home throwing her son Paul a birthday
party with making him an elaborate cake
that looked like a truck she was very
creative in her birthday cakes for kids
Andria's condition improved in their new
house her Focus continued to be the
children as she cared for her son and
homeschool the older three and the kids
were obviously brilliant if you've ever
looked at any of their
artwork these are incredibly talented
children for 4 months life seemed to be
returning to
normal in November despite warnings from
doctors Andrea and Rusty decided to have
another baby women with histories of
postpartum psychosis have 50 to 80%
chance of having another episode
Andrea stopped taking her medication and
discontinued the use of birth control in
4 months she was pregnant coming up
Andrea's fifth child is born setting off
the series of events that would end an unspeakable
