13 homicide-suicides, events in which an individual murders 1 or more persons & kills himself immediately afterward, were studied. Findings were presented in terms of the setting in which these events occurred, the relationship between perpetrator & victim, & the rationalizations produced by the perpetrators to explain their behavior. The results are interpreted to suggest that persons who commit homicide-suicide are acting out a 3-party rescue fantasy in an attempt to resolve unbearable stress.