This week, 34-year-old Eric R. Meagan was charged with one count of murder after allegedly killing his mother, 56-year-old Victoria Palmer. On Monday, he phoned in his confession to the New Milford police department, explaining that he felt he had to ”sacrifice” his mother in order to make ”demons stop.”
Meagan’s justification for the horrific act was more dismaying; he believed that his mother’s love for him was so profound that she would have offered up her own life to save him.
Meagan told police officers that he asked his mother to accompany him on a walk to the local park, already intending to hurt her. Upon their arrival, he forced Palmer into the water and held her in a headlock for nearly 10 minutes. After her body turned limp, he pulled it back to shore and left her to float facedown in the water.
Due to the sheer gravity of the offense, Meagan is currently being held on a $2 million bond and will appear in court again on July 7th to answer. What this case illustrates more than anything else is the terrible consequences of decreased and untreated mental illness.
When encountering a family member or friend displaying signs of mental illness, they must be guided toward getting proper medical care rather than looking away. Without access to resources, a dangerous outcome is almost inevitable.