An Exploratory Analysis of the Contexts and Circumstances of Filicide-Suicide in Chicago, 1965-1994

Five hypotheses were tested for this study, using a database that includes incident-level information on over 22,000 homicides in Chicago during the years 1965-1994. Findings do not support the hypothesis of differential risk of suicide following filicide by genetic parents & stepparents. A replication of previous work indicates: filicides with multiple victims are more likely to end in the offender’s suicide; parents are more likely to die by suicide following a filicide of an older child; older parents, relative to younger parents, are more likely to die by suicide; & fathers, relative to mothers, are more likely to die by suicide following filicide. (12 refs.)