Medical Minute: Are You Raising a Sociopath?

Police in Staten Island, NY say a 14-year-old boy is the lead suspect in the deaths of his mother and three younger siblings.

Police say C.J. Jones used a straight razor to slash the throats of his younger sisters Brittany, 10, and Melony, 7, before slashing his own throat and setting the family’s apartment ablaze.

Also found in the smoldering rubble were the bodies of the children’s mother Leisha Jones, 33, and her 2-year-old son Jermaine. The cause of deaths of both Jones and Jermaine have not been determined.

According to the NY Daily News, the murder weapon — the straight razor — was found lodged under C.J.’s body after firefighters put out the blaze. It isn't known why C.J. wiped out his entire family. But the tragedy may have been prevented.

Children who kill their entire families are known quite simply as socio-paths.There are some common characteristics shared by sociopathic children. They really are easy to spot, although parents (and school staff) often ignore the warning signs

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  So what are the warning signs?
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  An interest in fires or starting fires (a firestarter)
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  Lack of remorse or indifference
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  Verbal or physical aggression
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  Cruelty to animals
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  Bed wetting that lasts longer than normal
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  Total lack of conscience, empathy or compassion for others
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  Truancy
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  Lying, manipulative and deceptive behavior
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  Stealing
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  Vandalism to property
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  Preoccupied with violence
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  Acting out in a bizarre, sexually inappropriate manner (i.e., masturbating in front of others)
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  Seeks immediate gratification of needs]
  
  
  
  
  
  Doctors caution that just because children exhibits these signs, it doesn’t necessarily mean they will grow up to become killers. But if your child exhibits all three of the above signs that are in bold (fire starting, cruelty to animals and lack of compassion or empathy for others), there is a very good chance that you have another C.J. Jones on your hands.
  
  
  Other notable examples of sociopathic children include Malcolm X’s grandson, Malcolm Shabazz, who caused the death of his grandmother at age 12 by setting fire to her home; and Lionel Tate, the Florida youth who was sentenced to life in prison at age 12 for killing his six-year-old playmate.
  Doctors agree that children should be assessed for signs of antisocial behavior as early as age 4 or 5. But most of these children progress out of such behaviours as they grow older. C.J. Jones was still fascinated with setting fires at age 14.
  A child who repeatedly sets fires to school property in Atlanta would have been sent to one of the two area youth detention centers where skilled psychologists are on staff to treat him.
  The Staten Island school system failed C.J. and his family.