Murder of Elli Perkins
Elli Perkins (née Present; 1949 – March 13, 2003) was a professional glass artist, and a Scientologist who lived in Western New York. She was a senior auditor at the Church of Scientology in Buffalo, New York.
Elli Perkins | |
|---|---|
| Born | Elli Present 1949 |
| Died | March 13, 2003 |
| Cause of death | Multiple stab wounds |
| Occupation | Glass artist |
| Known for | Circumstances of her death |
| Spouse | Don Perkins |
| Children | 2 |
When he was in his mid-20s, her son, Jeremy showed strange behaviour; he was diagnoesed to suffer from Schizophrenia. The group Scientology is against psychiatry, most of the time. To be in line with what Scientology said, Elli Perkins did not look for psychiatric care, or treat his illness with antipsychotic drugs. Instead, she tried to treat this with vitamins.
His condition did not get better. At some point, Jeremy thought Elli was posioning him. He later explained: "she makes me take these vitamins everyday". In this context, the "vitamins" were the alternative medicine he was forced to take. When he was about 28 years old, Jeremy, tried to kill himself, but failed. Because he felt threatened, he murdered his mother.
The crime was prominently featured in the news. Newspapers such as The Amherst Bee, The Buffalo News, or the New York Post reported on it. There was also an installment of the investigative news program 48 Hours. The media asserted that his mother was at least partly responsible for her own death: Her refusal for his treatment by a psychiatrist, caused his outburst, and her death.
A court later said, that because he was suffering from Schizophrenia, and that he wasn't treated correctly, Jeremy could not be made responsible for killing his mother.
Other websites
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Media related to Elli Perkins at Wikimedia Commons
- Scientology - A Question of Faith: Did A Mother's Faith Contribute To Her Murder?, CBS News
- PerkinsTragedy.org - Web site cited in the LA Weekly ad and by Salon