Many of you will recall Kerry Daynes' contribution to the tv programme 'Killing Mum and Dad'. Kerry is a forensic psychologist.
http://www.expertsearch.co.uk/cgi-bin/find_expert?5788https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcTvqLk0MWUDear Kerry
I am sure you will recall your contribution to 'Killing Mum and Dad' regarding the above. As an aide-memoire I have detailed your input as follows:
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It's likely that he felt incredibly rejected on many different fronts and that this caused him to feel that he desperatly wanted attention. He wanted to be loved but that if he actually attempted to get this he would be rejected again. This causes a terrible conflict for a child and one way of coping with it might be simply to detach. You detach from your emotions so you can't be hurt. What could of happened is that the emotional switches in Jeremy's brain could have been permanently jammed in the off position.
It's possible that these are the early signs that in actual fact that he has got psychopathic traits. So breaking rules, constantly breaking rules in many different ways. Also being sexually promiscious and really needing a high level of stimulation. They are very prone to boredom.
I think that is classic behaviour of a psychopath. I think that in essence Jeremy painted on his emotions. The emotions that he felt he should portray for that day. And then when he felt that nobody was watching him, or nobody that mattered was watching him, he simply took the mask off and put it to one side.
He certainly ticks an awful lot of the boxes for a psychopath. Here is somebody who is grandiose. He's arrogant. He seems to have very little emotion and what he does is very shallow and rather fake. He manipulates other people and he's quite happy to use people to meet his own needs.
I believe that in the past he has coped with overwhelming emotions by simply cutting off from them. And really he has done the same thing in response to his offences. Denial of his offences is the biggest form of cutting off you can have. In his mind he probably believes that he really didn't do it".
I would like to raise a few points and ask a few questions:
- Were you aware that Sheila Caffell (nee Bamber) and Jeremy Bamber were adopted by Nevill and June Bamber shortly after birth?
- It is reported that Sheila spent two weeks with her birth mother before spending the next 2/3 months in a children's home pending adoption.
- Were you aware that June Bamber suffered two breakdowns requiring in-patient psychiatric care before and after adopting Sheila? The first breakdown occurred in 1955 and according to June's friends was bound up with her inability to conceive children. The second breakdown occurred in 1959, at which time Sheila was circa 2 years of age, and according to June's psychiatrist was caused by her decision to adopt. The second breakdown required electroconvulsive treatment.
- Following June's second breakdown a full-time 17 year old nanny was employed to care for Sheila. During June's abscence I believe Nevill cared for Sheila with family support.
- Despite the above Mr and Mrs Bamber were approved to adopt Jeremy Bamber in 1961. Sheila's nanny continued to work full-time looking after Sheila and Jeremy until Jeremy was around 2 years of age at which time she worked as and when required until Jeremy was of school age. Other girls, including a French au pair, were employed on the same causual basis.
- Apparently Mr and Mrs Bamber told Sheila and Jeremy they were adopted when they were each around 7 years of age. Jeremy attended boarding school around the age of 8 and Sheila from the age of 10 . Their respective boarding schools were miles away from each other and White House Farm (the Bamber family home).
- Sheila was reunited with her birth mother and other birth family members some 3 months before the murders.
- Are you aware that a pscyhology exists peculiar to adoption? David Brodzinsky is argubably the world's expert on adoption and has authored and co-authored several books on the subject including 'The Psychology Of Adoption' co-authored with Dr Marshall Schechter, a child psychiatrist. The book includes the largest study of adopted children where the authors have brought together a group of leading researchers from various disciplines to explore the complex, interdisciplinary subject of adoption. Also 'The Lifelong Search For Self' based on Erik Erikson's model of psychosocial stages of development.
http://www.aclu-il.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/CV-David-Brodzinsky.pdfhttp://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Psychology-Adoption-David-Brodzinsky/dp/0195082737http://www.amazon.co.uk/Being-Adopted-Lifelong-Search-Self/dp/0385414021- I will take it as a given that you are fully conversant with attachment theory. Are you aware of the work of Dr Allan Schore? His research shows a correlation between attachment and suicide. I have linked below relevant presentations:
http://www.allanschore.com/pdf/AllanSchoreCV2012.pdfhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQ236szRMD4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB51V3fAAvshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTZQhCMy3vU- Are you aware of the National Scientific Council for the developing child? Their research shows how maternal depression and neglect can adversely affect the developing child. The definition of neglect is inadequate responsiveness to the needs of young children by caregivers. I have linked below relevant material:
http://developingchild.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/The-Science-of-Neglect-The-Persistent-Absence-of-Responsive-Care-Disrupts-the-Developing-Brain.pdfhttp://developingchild.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Maternal-Depression-Can-Undermine-Development.pdf- I understand Jeremy has been assessed by numerous psychologists during his long incarceration and as far as I am aware no professional has identified any mental illness and/or personality disorder.
Surely my comments above are highly relevant to the Bamber family and yet you have not included any aspect in your contribution to 'Killing Mum and Dad'? I would also add that as far as I am aware the psychiatrist that treated June and Sheila privately, Dr Hugh Ferguson, did not at any stage of treating either woman make reference to any aspect of the above. Nor did he discuss any aspect of this with Jeremy's defence therefore jurors were denied full knowledge of the psychological backgrounds of the victims and defendent.
Thank you for taking the time to read my email.
I would welcome any comments you might wish to make.
Yours sincerely
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