The British Journal of Psychiatry 160: 410-412 (1992)
© 1992 The Royal College of Psychiatrists
Parental hostage takers
HG Kennedy and DE Dyer
Maudsley Hospital, London.
Three men presented to a single regional secure psychiatric unit over a
twelve-month period, after taking their youngest child hostage in their own
homes because of a threatened separation from the family. In each case the
episode had escalated because of hostility to police involvement in what
for them was a typical domestic upheaval. All cases ended without injury.
In each man, substance abuse, a family history of domestic violence and
fears of rejection were prominent, and the recent birth of a child may have
been an added precipitant. There may be a common family structure which
predisposes to such situations. Psychiatric intervention was deemed
appropriate, with some evidence of benefit for the two men who engaged in
treatment.