For many officials, the case evoked memories of Marilyn Lemak, who on March 4, 1999, mixed an anti-anxiety prescription medicine, an antidepressant drug and aspirin into her three children's peanut butter and then suffocated them in their downtown Naperville home.

In addition to her uncontested divorce, which became final in July 2002, Helgeson had been sued in January by Discover Card for $9,480 in unpaid bills, according to court records. She is currently unemployed, Truemper said.


Although police did not know what allegedly motivated Helgeson, some family friends and relatives described the woman as troubled.

Well, duh. Being in a bit of a financial pickle myself, I can sympathize. Stress is a bitch. I am fortunate to have a husband to share the stress with. It's not always pretty, but it keeps us sane.

I find myself wondering (and , of course, this is merely speculative since I don't know all the particulars in these cases...) why the fathers don't know what is happening to their children. If they no longer care about their wives, can't they at least care enough to see how the stesses impact on the mothers?