Peoria woman still pushing for more mental health resources after 1998 tragedy
A Peoria woman whose two family members were killed during a mental health crisis is still pushing for more resources for the mentally ill. Denise Ackerman, a Peoria woman, has been pushing for increased access to mental health resources in Arizona since her nephew, Matthew Brower, shot and killed his mother and then himself during a psychotic episode over 20 years ago. She moved to Arizona after her sister Marilyn Brower was killed by her then-28-year-old son, Matthew, who was diagnosed as schizophrenic at 16 and started to struggle with episodes of psychosis. Despite this, Ackerman believes that the diagnosis and treatment of severe mental illness in Arizona has not improved. New numbers appear to support her claim, with Mental Health America ranking Arizona the 49th state in the nation for adult mental health care.
Published : 11 months ago by Sarah Robinson in Health
PEORIA, AZ (AZFamily) — A Peoria woman who says her nephew shot and killed his mother and then himself during a psychotic episode more than 20 years ago says access to mental health care has not improved.
Denise Ackerman says a recent case where a Chandler teen turned the gun on his parents during a mental health crisis is similar to her own story.
Families of both young men say they were previously turned away from the in-patient treatment they needed.
For the past 26 years, Ackerman has been hoping that the diagnosis and treatment of severe mental illness in Arizona would improve but believes it hasn’t.
New numbers appear to back up her claim.
Mental Health America ranked Arizona the 49th state in the nation for adult mental health care.
“Matthew was diagnosed as schizophrenic at about 16 years old. He was this gorgeous blonde-haired, blue-eyed,” said Ackerman.
Ackerman says she moved to Arizona under unfortunate circumstances after her sister Marilyn Brower was killed by her then-28-year-old son Matthew Brower.
“He says, ‘Aunt Dee, I’m sick. But nobody will help me.’ And I said, ‘Matthew, we will find a way.’” said Ackerman.
She says Matthew was a good kid who started to struggle with episodes of psychosis-- periods where he would lose touch with reality.
Eventually, the episodes became more severe over time and resulted in an arrest.
“He was in, he was out, he was bouncing around. Again, nobody was making sure that he was where he was supposed to be,” Ackerman said.
Denise remembers the moment she said Matthew could not get continuous care through Arizona’s Medicaid system, AHCCCS, which is state-funded.
“When they had told my sister that she had to take Matthew back or they’d put him on the street. My sister would never allow that to happen, so she took him home,” she said.
It was here where she says things took a dark turn.
“All the social workers kept saying, ‘Nope, he will never harm you, he loves you.’ Yeah, I guess they were wrong. Really wrong,” Ackerman said.
On March 31, 1998, Matthew shot and killed his mother before turning the gun on himself.
“I can’t move past it. She was my best friend. She was my sister. He killed my sister and for that, I am really very angry. But he is a victim, too,” she said.
Last week, 19-year-old Jeremiah Blair was indicted on two counts of attempted murder.
His brother previously told Arizona’s family that he was in some kind of manic episode and they tried to get him treatment only to be turned away.
Just days later, he allegedly tried to kill his parents.
“I saw the brother on TV upset, crying, saying, you know, my parents were trying to get him help. It was like I was stepping back into 1998 all over again and I felt so bad,” Ackerman said.
Ackerman says she successfully sued both the state for refusing his care and K-Mart, who she said sold him the gun when he was in an episode and did not fill out the application properly.
She was hoping that would move the needle forward for mental health access and feels for the Blair family.
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Topics: Social Issues