WARNING: Graphic Images
News of the deliberate crash of a German airliner a few weeks ago [1] eclipsed the story of a 19 y.o. who fatally stabbed his mother and critically injured his grandmother, in the Philadelphia home the three shared [2].
The term “home” can be applied only loosely to the situation Zachary Pritchett endured. The house had no running water and few contents. Human feces covered the floor of the room to which Zachary was evidently confined. His screams, neighbors say, could be heard every night.
Whatever else went on, neighbors were aware that – year in and year out – the young man was never allowed out of the house, and never schooled. Police and the Dept. of Human Services (child protective services) were notified, again and again. Though police responded to the house at least a dozen times in the last year alone, no action appears to have been taken.
The night before the stabbings Zachary was overheard pleading, “Please, leave me alone. Don’t do this. Let go.”
Everyone of us has a breaking point. Zachary’s rage at a lifetime of abuse and neglect finally boiled over. He is now at the tender mercies of the justice system. All things considered, it has to be an improvement.
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[1] CNN, “Germanwings Co-Pilot Andreas Lubitz Declared ‘Unfit to Work’ Officials Say” by Faith Karimi, Michael Pearson, and Laura Smith-Spark, 3/27/15, http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/27/europe/france-germanwings-plane-crash-main/ .
[2] 6 ABC Action News/Philadelphia, “Neighbors Say Trouble in Home Preceded Fatal Double Stabbing in Bridesburg” by Chad Pradelli, 3/27/15, http://6abc.com/news/feces-no-running-water-in-home-where-fatal-double-stabbing-occurred/575533/.
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ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 
Anna oh how heart-breaking this is and I do believe you are right he will be better cared for in the prison system sad but true …… I shall pray for this young man. jacqui xx
Sometimes that is all we can do. What is especially troubling to me is that authorities did not intervene earlier.
This is so sad that the system failed this child year after year! It’s a sad thought that someone will get better care in a prison or even in a mental institution than they would get in their own home. Abuse and neglect happens more often than we know until the victim reaches their breaking point and becomes the aggressor. Praying for this young man.