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Author Topic: Dad convicted of leaving son with psychotic wife who drowned him in hot tub  (Read 7915 times)
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MuffyBee
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« on: January 31, 2010, 02:01:34 PM »

http://www.woai.com/news/local/story/Dad-convicted-of-leaving-son-with-psychotic-wife/db2BL9ypGUu7eDHmaiy1Rg.cspx
January 31, 2010

Dad convicted of leaving son with psychotic wife

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A man was convicted Friday of leaving his 1-year-old son alone with his psychotic wife who drowned the boy in their hot tub.

Jurors deliberated about 30 minutes before convicting Michael Maxon of intentionally abandoning his son when he left their Mansfield house in 2006 to run errands. Maxon faces from two to 20 years in prison.

According to testimony, doctors and relatives had warned him not to leave baby Alex alone with his wife because of her delusions, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported in Friday online editions.

In 2008 a judge found Valeria Maxon innocent by reason of insanity. She was sent to a state mental hospital as required by law.

She believed that her baby was the anti-Christ who would be tortured before causing the Apocalypse.
« Last Edit: April 02, 2010, 08:26:18 PM by MuffyBee » Logged

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« Reply #1 on: January 31, 2010, 02:06:21 PM »

Why was she allowed to be around her child to begin with? 
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« Reply #2 on: January 31, 2010, 02:22:14 PM »

Why was she allowed to be around her child to begin with? 


Exactly, Nut.  Why?  Why have Valeria Maxon under the same roof as her child, if she were suffering from delusions?  To me, even going into the bathroom and leaving the baby in the house with her was risky?  And what about sleeping at night?  What if Valeria got up in the night while the other adult were asleep, and went in and did something to the baby?  If doctors and relatives had warned the dad not to leave the baby alone with Valeria the mother, do they have some responsibility also?  To me, it meant the home wasn't safe for the baby.  Period.  The baby should have been removed from the household for it's own personal safety.    IMO it would be hard for even the most vigilant person to make certain nothing happened.  I admit, leaving the baby in the house alone with her wasn't good at all.  Just not sure if this wasn't something just waiting to happen.   
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« Reply #3 on: April 02, 2010, 08:17:56 PM »

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/state&id=7365071
Man gets 10 years in baby's death caused by wife
Friday, April 2, 2010

FORT WORTH, TX -- A north Texas man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for leaving his baby alone with his psychotic wife, who drowned their son in a hot tub.

Michael Maxon was convicted earlier this year of intentionally abandoning his 1-year-old son when he left their Mansfield home in 2006 to run errands.

According to trial testimony, doctors and relatives had warned him not to leave the child alone with his wife because of her delusions.

During sentencing Thursday, the judge said he was disturbed that Maxon still insisted he didn't do anything wrong.

His wife, Valeria Maxon, was sent to a state mental hospital in 2008 after she was found innocent by reason of insanity in the baby's death. She believed that her child was the anti-Christ who would be tortured before causing the Apocalypse.
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« Reply #4 on: April 02, 2010, 08:20:10 PM »

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6941875.html
Texas man gets 10 years after wife drowns baby
Friday, April 2, 2010

 FORT WORTH, Texas — A Texas man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for leaving his baby alone with his psychotic wife, who drowned their son in a hot tub.

Michael Maxon appears to be the first husband held criminally responsible in Texas cases involving mentally ill women who have killed their children, said prosecutor Alana Minton.

Maxon, 56, was convicted earlier this year of intentionally abandoning his 1-year-old son when he left the couple's Mansfield home in 2006 to run errands. According to trial testimony, doctors and relatives had warned him not to leave his son Alex alone with his wife, who had been having delusions that her son was the anti-Christ who would be tortured before causing the Apocalypse.

In 2008, a judge found Valeria Maxon innocent by reason of insanity in the baby's death. She was sent to a state mental hospital, as required by Texas law with such verdicts.

During Michael Maxon's sentencing Thursday, state District Judge Wayne Salvant said he was disturbed that Maxon still believed he was not responsible for the baby's death. Maxon faced from two to 20 years in prison.

But defense attorney Jack Strickland, who sought probation for Maxon, said his client was charged only because prosecutors thought "somebody has got to pay" after Valeria Maxon avoided prison, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported in Friday editions.

Strickland also cited the high-profile case of Houston mother Andrea Yates, who drowned her five children in the bathtub in 2001, the Dallas Morning News reported.

"There was a great outcry after Yates," Strickland said. "Maybe to a degree those chickens have come home to roost."

At her first capital murder trial in 2002, Yates was convicted but avoided the death penalty and was sentenced to life in prison. Prosecutors said they were looking into whether her husband, Rusty Yates, had any culpability but ultimately did not charge him.

Trial testimony revealed that Andrea Yates suffered from postpartum psychosis, which caused delusions, and had been in and out of mental hospitals for other mental illnesses. Doctors warned the couple not to have more children after Andrea Yates tried to commit suicide twice within months of having her fourth child.

But her case was overturned on appeal, and in 2006, Yates was found innocent by reason of insanity and sent to a state mental hospital.

In at least two other cases, women who killed their children and had a history of mental illness were found innocent by reason of insanity. Dena Schlosser of Plano killed her 10-month-old daughter by cutting off her arms in 2004, and Deanna Laney of New Chapel Hill beat her three young sons with rocks in 2003, killing two of them.
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« Reply #5 on: April 02, 2010, 08:25:21 PM »

http://www.star-telegram.com/2010/04/01/2084787/mansfield-man-gets-10-years-in.html
Mansfield man gets 10 years in wife's drowning of son
Thursday, April 1, 2020


Michael Rudolph Maxon


 FORT WORTH -- State District Judge Wayne Salvant sentenced a Mansfield man to 10 years in prison on Thursday for leaving his 1-year-old son alone with his mentally ill wife, who drowned the boy because she believed that he was the Antichrist.

The prison sentence for Michael Maxon, 56, is believed to be the first in Texas for a husband who has been held criminally responsible for the actions of his mentally ill wife, prosecutor Alana Minton said.

On Jan. 29, a Tarrant County jury took less than 30 minutes to convict Maxon of abandoning his son, Alex, and placing him in imminent danger of death or serious injury. Despite warnings from mental health professionals, Maxon left his wife, Valeria Maxon, alone with the infant for about 11/2 hours on June 30, 2006.

Clearly concerned about the speed of the jury's verdict, Maxon's attorney, Jack Strickland, asked Salvant to assess Maxon's punishment. He had previously asked the jury to decide the sentence.

Salvant delayed sentencing until probation officers had prepared a report on Maxon. After hearing from a psychologist and the daughter of Maxon's former business partner Thursday, Salvant agreed with prosecutors that Maxon deserved prison time.

Strickland had requested probation. The maximum sentence was 20 years in prison. There is no minimum time Maxon has to serve before he is eligible for parole.

An unusual case

Before sentencing Maxon, Salvant acknowledged that the trial was unusual.

The judge said he was disturbed that Maxon still doesn't believe that he is responsible for his son's death. "You said over and over that you didn't do anything wrong," Salvant said. "I want you to understand that you did. I hope that someday you realize the seriousness of your case and what your actions caused."

Minton argued that Maxon does not deserve probation nor could he comply with its terms because he is narcissistic and paranoid and does not respect authority; , therefore he cannot be rehabilitated. "Probation is for people who show remorse," she said.

Strickland said Maxon accepts responsibility for his "bad decisions" in leaving his son with his wife. But Maxon doesn't interact socially or display emotions as most people do, a defense psychologist testified. The psychologist said Maxon had traits of Asperger syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism.

"He does accept responsibility, just not in the fashion they wanted," Strickland said.

Maxon believes that he was "singled out" for prosecution because the state could not try his insane wife, Strickland said. "The sentiment was that somebody has got to pay," he said.

Minton said jurors were horrified that Maxon left his son in the care of a woman whose psychosis seemed obvious. Some asked why he didn't take the child with him.

"The jury recognized that both parents are responsible for a child. I think the jury's quick verdict played into the judge's decision," Minton said.

Other Texas cases

In at least three other well-publicized Texas cases of mothers killing their children, the women were married and living with their husbands, and mental health professionals testified that the symptoms of their illnesses were obvious before the killings.

The cases are Andrea Yates of Houston, who drowned her five children in 2001; Dena Schlosser of Plano, who killed her baby by cutting off her arms in 2004; and Deanna Laney of New Chapel Hill in East Texas, who beat two sons to death and left the third blind and brain-damaged in 2003.

Like those women, Valeria Maxon was found not guilty of capital murder by reason of insanity. She has been in a state mental hospital since the 2008 verdict.


Valeria Maxon

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MuffyBee
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« Reply #6 on: April 02, 2010, 08:28:43 PM »

http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/news/040110-dad-gets-10-years-for-leaving-son-with-psychotic-wife
Dad Gets 10 Years for Leaving Son with Psychotic Wife
Thursday, April 1, 2010

MANSFIELD, Texas - A man who was convicted of leaving his 1-year-old son alone with his psychotic wife will now spend 10 years behind bars.

Jurors recently convicted Michael Maxon of intentionally abandoning his son when he left their Mansfield house in 2006 to run errands. The boy’s mother drowned him in a hot tub.

According to testimony, doctors and relatives had warned Maxon not to leave baby Alex alone with his wife because of her delusions. She believed that her baby was the anti-Christ who would be tortured before causing the Apocalypse.

In 2008 a judge found Valeria Maxon innocent by reason of insanity. She was sent to a state mental hospital as required by law.

Judge Wayne Salvant told the courtroom Thursday that he spent sleepless nights pondering what sentence to dole out to Michael Maxon.

Prosecutor Alana Minton said the judge’s sentence echoed the jury’s quick guilty verdict and Maxon’s failure to accept responsibility for his role in his son’s death.

Defense attorney Jack Strickland said his client should have gotten probation instead of 10 years.

"We just tried to focus on trying to find an explanation as to why Mr. Maxon might be perceived as not accepting responsibility and not caring about his wife and child. Nothing is further from the fact," Strickland said.
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