Familicide

Familicide is the term used to describe the killing of one's entire family and oneself. The majority of US familicides are committed by the father and it is usually triggered by financial hardship. Mothers that commit familicides usually only kill the children and not the spouse because they believe that the husband can cope and move on but that the children would be left in a cruel world so that it would be better for her to take them with her. Familicide is seen as an extended suicide of the perpetrator. although familicides are infrequent, the majority of mass suicides (the killing of 4 or more people in less than a 24 hour period) committed in the US are familicides.

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