National Spokesperson

Dr. Rona Fields

The Children’s Rights Council enthusiastically welcomes Rona M. Fields, Ph.D. as a national spokesperson behalf of children and families. Contributing her invaluable clinical research expertise, she offers unique insights into the potential links between depression, suicides and homicides affecting children of separation and divorce. 

Dr. Fields is Founding Director of Associates in Community Psychology, a clinical and international consulting company in Washington, D.C.  As an extensively published author, she has numerous books and articles: including The Future of Women, The New Feminists, Society Under Siege: A Psychology of Northern Ireland, and her latest release, “Martyrdom:  The Psychology, Theology and Politics of Self-Sacrifice” (Praeger, 2004), earning her the reputation as a leading authority on the complex psychological issues associated with domestic violence, terrorism, and post traumatic stress disorder.

She is a Senior Research professor and Director of the Cognitive Sciences Program at the Center of Advanced Defense Studies, School of Engineering and Applies Sciences, George Washington University.  She has held visiting appointments at several universities and abroad and was Amnesty International fellow at the Peace Research Institute of Oslo in 1975.  Dr. Fields can be reached at Rmfields27@aol.com, or via telephone at (202) 882-8833.

From Dr. Rona Fields:

Domestic Violence, School Shooting and Suicide/Homicide terrorism have many common denominators:

1. The perpetrator is angry and feels no guilt about his angry actions because he believes that this act is “deserved” either by the immediate victims or the larger society;
2. This individual(s) has been living in isolation either self imposed or by virtue of a mental illness or political will;
3. The perpetrator feels himself to be an outcast and in fact is usually someone who has been marginalized in the larger society;
4. The perpetrator is often the survivor of childhood trauma;
5. The perpetrator often suffered brain damage through head injuries or other physical anomalies;
6. There are no valid predictive questionnaires or other test instruments that can predict more than 50% of the likelihood that an individual will commit such as act and it is impossible to product such an instrument without misidentifying at least half the population and thereby doing further damage.

There is a serious need to provide for mental health treatment. Many of those who commit multiple homicides and suicide have needed mental health services and been denied admission to hospitals because they cannot be said to be in “imminent” danger of killing themselves or others.  If and when they do come before a magistrate or judge, if they are fortunate, they will be committed for evaluation. This is not a one day affair, nor even a 24 hour process. Evaluation by a forensic team may take ten days or more. During that time medication will be tried and evaluated and forms of behavioral treatment likewise. When the patient is discharged there will be an after-care plan with case management supervision.

Because of the shortage of beds, many hospitals are full with persons found to be Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity after they have attempted or succeeded in committing homicide or suicide.  The more common alternative, because the NGRI Determination is either not available or the individual does not meet the very high standards for making this determination, is jail. Jail reaffirms the paranoid delusions and confirms their determination for vengeance.

Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD):

1. This is variously experienced by individuals who have suffered the disequalibrium of immediate threat to life, bodily integrity and loved ones
2. It can be experienced vicariously as a secondary victimization;
3. There are different steps to recovery for different individuals. Some may not show their traumatization for up to a year and then experience an anniversary reaction. Some begin to have flashbacks and nightmares immediately. Untreated PTSD can result in an Adjustment Disorder which is a more crippling diagnostic category;
4. Treatment must be aimed at restoring confidence in the self, judgment and perception;
5. The random nature of the trauma challenges the rational organization of the subjective universe.

Treatment for PTSD and all behavioral anomalies and diagnoses has become increasingly more difficult to attain as insurance costs have gone up and allowances for Mental Health are decreased.  For those who have no insurance in the District of Columbia, a seriously ill individual may have to wait two to six months to see a psychiatrist and be given medication. There are so few licensed, accredited psychologists available in the public sector (because they haven’t been sought or hired) that chances of valid diagnosis have decreased even as the diagnostic tools have become increasingly valid and effective treatment developed.

Even as homicide/suicide has proliferated, health insurance has decreased mental health benefits, put more layers of bureaucrats between the patient and therapist to rationalize denial of benefits, made it harder for providers to collect on claims and denied claims for utilization of clinical and neuropsychological testing.

Children’s Rights:

1. Children have the right to Vigilant Parents. Parents who will not hesitate to turn off the TV if they feel the text and pictures are potentially damaging to the child, turn off the computer and take away video games;
2. Children have the right to parents who will, when a violent tragedy occurs, take the time to help their child process the horror, fear and subsequent insecurity
3. Children have the right to parents who will reassure them that they will be there for them
4. Children have the right to know that their parents will advocate for them and will protect them from bullying and humiliation;
5. Children have the right to be able to tell their parents when they are afraid and to be comforted.

Finally, everyone has the right to appropriate and timely mental health services including the services of a licensed, qualified psychologist.  Mental or Behavioral Health services under Managed care are not equivalent to medical service allowances on the same policy.  An individual with a bi-polar illness cannot be assured of appropriate mental health care as would a patient with cancer or diabetes-medical services.

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