Have you ever heard of a 5 year old committing suicide?

Question

There is a couple that goes to my mothers church, it was the mother, father, and 2 children. The children were ages 5 and 1.
The 5 year old boy is the mothers child from a previous marriage .. and the 1 year old is the child the couple had together. (so, the 5 year old's mom married this man and had a baby with him .. making the 5 year old his step son).
Well, the 5 year old was always a hyper child and was always hyper during church services.
Last month the 5 year old was found hanging from a rope off the top bunk in his bedroom. It happend while the mother and 1 year old were away from the house .. it was only the 5 year old and the step dad at home.
They said it was an accident .. or "possible suicide".
Can a 5 year old really be clever enough to hang themself from a bunk bed with a rope??? Are they really able to tie a knot that strong???
I think it sounds fishy .. but the sad thing is, there is NO investigation.
Do you think the step dad did it? Do you think the mom knew?

Do you think the kid purposely killed themself?
Or do you think it was an accident??

My mom has since seen the couple at church and she said they don't seem like they are mourning whatsoever.

(I asked this question yesterday .. but I really feel like something happend to this boy and nobody is doing anything about it because the family is a good "Christian" family, it's just bothering me when I think about it)

Answer 1

at 5 I could tie some really strong knots. so yes it is possible. I don't think that a child that age can purposly commit suicide. but I think one of two things happened.

1. the child was playing with the rope and killed himself by falling off the top bunk with the rope around his kneck. there are a lot of movies where they show people hanging, he might have seen a movie and did not understand it. then tried to act out the movie.

or

2. the step father had something to do with it.

Answer 2

Sounds like the step father may have had a hand in it. How sad. And the mother isn't questioning any of this? That has to make you wonder as well.... I don't think the 5 year old would be able to tie the knot and judge how long to make the rope and third what would make a 5 year old suicidal if it were possible?? There would obviously have to be some real bad things going on in that household.

Answer 3

I really don't think that a 5 year old has the capacity to understand death or suicide. It's possible that the 5 year old saw something on TV that showed a hanging and it was something that he wanted to copy and did it off the bunk bed and accidentally hung himself. Otherwise I can't see him purposely doing it. As for knowing if the stepfather did it, that is something that you will probably never know. Unless there was some kind of abuse, but we don't know that. He could have been a loving stepfather. An innocent child died here and I am sure that there would have been an investigation had there been suspicion.

Answer 4

I heard on one case with a 7 year old child I am not sure of the details but I remember he looped a belt around his neck and there was something else with the bed involved. Suicide is not a word 5 year olds can comprehend even if you explained it to them 1000 times, their minds are not wired yet to understand it. As far as it sounding fishy yea it does but it may have been an accident. I do think the police should look into it, and if it does not seem like the family is morning for him then I will say a prayer for him and you should as well.

Answer 5

I haven't read your question since it is so long--nor have I read any of the responses, because I don't really care. I did, however, notice that in your additional details, you claim this question is not for attention. That is false. You lack the courage of your convictions. I know that you don't have the nerve to kill yourself. If you did, you wouldn't be coming on here seeking guidance or approval. If you want to successfully kill yourself, the first thing you have to do is go along like everything's great. Don't tell anyone you're depressed or thinking of suicide. And if you were to do it, you would want to make sure to do it in a time and place that you will not be found. Nothing like a last-minute intervention... pain in the ***. Killing yourself, though, really isn't as easy as you would think. A lot of people try and just end up injuring themselves in some way without the desired results. So, if you really WERE to try, would you be prepared to face that consequence? Overdosing on pills, failing the suicide, but succeeding in destroying your liver? What about slitting your wrist? Would you be prepared for failure there and the loss of movement in your hand because you cut something you shouldn't have? Gunshot wound to the head--would you be prepared to live the rest of your life as a vegetable because you were a LITTLE off? Drowning, perhaps--if that fails, would you be prepared for the possibility of mental retardation after your failure? Jumping from a ledge? Would you be prepared for life in a wheelchair because you didn't land just right? There is ALWAYS something that can go wrong. Could you handle the failure? Anyway, like I said, you're not going to do anything, so my suggestion for you is to get out there, make some friends, be confident in yourself and what you have to offer, and stop whining about your life. You need to fix it.

Answer 6

No, but there have been problems with children accidentally hanging themselves after seeing this on movies. My friend's 9 year-old daughter accidentally hung herself after seeing a scene in a movie. Kids sometimes realize that things in movies are not real, so they don't think that they can get hurt. People just seem to think it is easier to blame the step-parent when something like this happens. Most likely it was a horrible accident.

I just wanted to add that not all people mourn in public. My husband and I lost a baby girl and you just get through it the best you can. Just because someone has lost a child it doesn't mean that they have to be sad 24/7. It IS a horrible, tragic thing, but you also have to get on with your life and be there for your other children also. Some people, like myself prefer to be alone and think about our lost children.

For those of you that say a 5 year-old can tie knots: Then how do they manage to get their shoe laces in knots when trying to learn to tie their shoes!?!

Answer 7

I do not think a 5 yr old would go that far ....
I don't even think suicide is on a 5 yr olds mind at all...maybe guns and robbery if htey see it on tv, but if the parents were always at church they woudln't even let him be put around that.
It i fishy...
I would say a 5 yr old might hurt himself and not go as far as killing himsefl BUT....I doubt it, I don't think a 5 yr old thinks of that AT ALL..they are still basically a baby....in their tender years.. I think the step dad did it...

Answer 8

Their are medical disorders out their one is called Multiple-complex Developmental Disorder. It rears its head before the age of 2 years old in children, Hyper activity is one sign . One of the main features of this disorder is Psychosis . I have a daughter with this disorder who laid in front of the school bus at the age of 5 because the devil told her she deserved to die. She is 16 years old today and will need supervision all her life( But God she is beautiful) On the other hand it could of been a true accident and the child could have been playing ex: playing dog and tying a skipping rope or rope as a leash around the neck and than falling. I know an eight year old girl who died that way. Judgement should never be cast on others and their grief could be private. If the authorities are satisfied than I think you should stay out of it and treat these people with respect. They have lost a child their grief must be unbearable and the last thing they need is this type of gossip going on.

I keep re-reading the answers that keep on coming and was very surprised that I got thumbs down for my response and the ones who preferred to think it was the step-father got thumbs up. In all my imaginings I would prefer to think it was accidental. What is with people that they prefer it to be murder especially of a child! Are we that ghoulish that we can take someones pain and spin stories out of? How many more thumbs down for this who knows but it is well worth it. My sympathies go out to the child's family may God give them strength.

Answer 9

There was a little girl in the Phillipines that just committed suicide..she was 7 or 8......the parents were very poor and didn't have money to give her for a school project. She left a note saying she was sick of being poor. Father unemployed and mother took in other peoples wash. Very sad.

Answer 10

It's very fishy indeed. I can't believe there is no investigation. Sometimes kids, especially hyper kids, might slip a cord from shades or blinds over their head and accidentally choke themselves. That's why parents should always secure those cords high enough that the kids can't get to them. I strongly advise that you call child protective services so they can make sure the surviving child is safe.