Family Forum / Parenting / Parenting / October 2005

Mentally ill mom pleads innocent to murder of 3 sons
10/21/2005

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The woman seen dropping her young sons into San
Francisco Bay pleaded innocent Friday to three counts of murder.
Lashuan Harris, described as mentally ill by family members, kept her
head down and held her public defender's hand through most of the
brief court hearing. She quietly answered "yes" when the San Francisco
Superior Court judge asked if she was willing to waive her right to a
speedy preliminary hearing.

Harris, 23, faces three counts of murder with the "special
circumstance" of multiple murder. A claim of special circumstances
means a murder defendant could be eligible for the death penalty, but
San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris said she hasn't yet
decided on whether to actually seek such a sentence.

"I've also said I'll always review the facts and compare them to the
law before I announce my decision," she said outside court Friday.

Her lawyer, Teresa Caffese, refused to address questions about Harris'
mental state, saying only her client was under suicide watch. She's
being held without bail. (Related story: Family: Harris suffered from
schizophrenia)

"It's very, very difficult," Caffese said. "This can't be captured in
words right now."

Authorities said Harris, a former nurse's assistant who was living in
a homeless shelter, was seen putting her three boys in the bay
Wednesday.

The body of Harris' middle son, Taronta Greeley, 2, was recovered late
Wednesday about two miles from Pier 7. The other two — Treyshun
Harris, 6 and Joshoa Greeley, 16 months — remained missing, but were
presumed dead after so many hours in the water.

The U.S. Coast Guard called off its search Thursday afternoon, but the
San Francisco police and fire departments continue to scour the bay
for the two bodies.

Harris' next court hearing was scheduled Oct. 28.

Harris told investigators she had taken the anti-psychotic drug Haldol
to control schizophrenia but stopped when she got her symptoms under
control over the summer, according to a police report. But she said
the voices returned Tuesday night and were still with her when she put
her children into the water, according to the report.

Family member said Harris had made threats before. An aunt told the
San Francisco Chronicle the threats had prompted the woman's mother to
contact authorities, but others said they didn't think Harris would
actually kill her children.

"She told my mama she was going to feed them to the sharks," said
Britney Fitzpatrick, Harris' 16-year-old half sister. "No one thought
it was that serious."

Demarcus Harris, Lashuan Harris' cousin, said the last time he saw her
was Tuesday at his sister's house in Oakland and the boys were with
her.

When his cousin left, she said goodbye and "I'm going to miss y'all."
He said neither he nor his sister suspected what she would do the next
day. "We all thought she was just going home," he said.

Harris was hospitalized in January at the John George Psychiatric
Pavilion in San Leandro and her mother was briefly granted custody of
the boys, according to her older sister, Telicia Harris, 26.

Alameda County social service workers concluded after the first
hospital stay that Lashuan was fit to care for her sons, Telicia
Harris said.

Lashuan Harris' aunt, Joyce Harris, told the Chronicle for Friday's
editions that Lashuan's mother had contacted social services officials
about three months ago to seek partial custody of the children. She
made the request because Harris had stopped taking medication and had
made threats regarding the boys, the paper reported.

"They said she was sane, that they couldn't do anything," Joyce Harris
told the newspaper.

Sylvia Soublet, a spokeswoman for the Alameda County Social Services
Agency, told the Chronicle she could not discuss whether the family
had contacted her agency about gaining custody.

"Lashuan is very protective of the children and I think one of the
reasons Lashuan stopped taking her medication was for fear of losing
her three children," an uncle, Avery Garrett, told NBC's Today show
Friday.