Tragedy highlights importance of mental health

By Lisa Moreno

SAN FRANCISCO

Standing before the makeshift memorial at the end of Pier 7, I can't help but imagine what might have been going through the mind of Lashaun Harris.

On Oct. 19 at approximately 5:30 p.m., Harris took her three young children to the end of the San Francisco pier, undressed them, lifted them over the heavy guardrail and flung them into the 55 degree water below.

The only remainder of that event is a fragment of yellow police tape tied at the entrance to the pier and pile of stuffed animals, flowers and handwritten notes that mourners have placed to create the makeshift memorial.

One such commemorative offering reads, "Note to Trayshaun, Travate, and Joshua [sic], rest in peace you all looked like beautiful children. Now you are all in the Lord's hands. Jesus loves you. All children are very special. Sincerely, Someone who cares for all children."

This somber note was attached to a dozen roses that have now begun to wilt. The flower petals floating in the bay below are a haunting reminder of what occurred there.

Harris has been charged with three counts of child assault and three counts of murder with special circumstances, allegations which may ultimately call for the death penalty.

Since that horrid day we have learned from Harris' family members that she is mentally ill, suffering from schizophrenia. At one point Harris was taking medication, but at the time she had killed her children she was not because she felt her symptoms were under control.

According to reports, Harris was living in a homeless shelter at the time of the murders. Given this fact, we can infer that Harris' socioeconomic status was relatively low, and that she was struggling to support herself and her three children.

Though it is uncertain what type of health insurance program Harris participated in, people in similar economic situations often find that Medi-Cal, California's public program which pays for health and long term care services for low income Californians, is a viable option.

According to Nicky Davis, compounding pharmacy technician, "Medi-Cal patients who suffer from mental illness generally have better coverage than those with cancer. So it would make little sense for someone under doctor's care to get away with going off of their medication, and frankly, cost would not be an issue."

Thus far, there have been no conclusive reports stating why Harris went off of her medication. Although family members have indicated that she thought her symptoms were under control, clearly this was far from the case.

This event is a wake-up call to all people that mental health is just as important as physical health. Although mental illnesses may not be accompanied by same outward symptoms we see when someone has the flu, the internal turmoil that people experience can be more devastating.

A report by the Contra Costa Times stated that Avis Harris, Lashaun Harris' mother, had earlier sought to gain custody of her three grandchildren. The court denied her plea.

This and other cases like it should cause our family court and social service system to be reexamined. I am not advocating for children to be taken away from their parents simply on the word of another individual, but in a situation where there is medical documentation, I believe that adjustments need to be made.

Obviously, I cannot say for certain that if Treyshun, Joshoa, and Taronta were living with their grandmother they would be alive today, but that question still remains.

While I stood on Pier 7, a woman, probably in her mid 30s studied the water blankly. She was wearing a pair of pink hospital scrubs and white tennis shoes.

She turned to me and asked, "Did you know the children?"

"No," I replied, "but I'm writing a story about them."

"Oh, that's good," she said "people need to understand what has happened."

And given the complex nature of mental illness, my fear is that we never will.

Lisa Moreno is a senior communication major.