When is it okay to kill?

Written by Tashi from the blog Tashi's TV on 27 Apr 2010
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What began as a Carte Blanche insert has been extended into a Crime & Investigation special to be broadcast round the world.

Tonight (28 April) the Crime and Investigation channel premieres The Ellen Pakkies Story. At 20h35.

Produced and directed by filmmaker Michael Duffet, the show unpacks the harrowing events surrounding Ellen Pakkies who murdered her son Abie in 2007.

The show mixes dramatic re-enactments with one-on-one interviews with Ellen herself, her lawyer in her trial, the prosecutor, the judge and other witnesses and experts.

It also presents the events that led up to his murder, as well as what followed afterwards: the court case and the court's decision to set Ellen free.

The key evidence:

21-year old Abie was addicted to crystal meth, also known as Tik in the Western Cape.

It turned him aggressive, violent and uncontrollable.

He threatened Ellen to the point where she had to lock herself in a room to escape him, in fear for her life.

Ellen Pakkies at a screening of the documentary in Cape Town recently. The show was screened for members of the press, those involved in drug rehabilitation and other interested parties.

He stole her possessions, her money, everything she had.

She had restraining orders taken out against him, which didn't restrain him. The police didn't enforce them. He kept coming back.

His father wasn't around to protect her, no-one supported her.

On 12 September 2007, Abie came home drugged and fell asleep. She strangled him with a rope.

She then went to work. After which she confessed.

Ellen during the screening of the footage of the dramatic re-enactment of the murder. With her is her friend Venecia Orgill, who's also in the documentary. Her son hanged himself, high on Tik. The two met during Ellen's trial. Ellen, too upset to watch further, left the screening room shortly after.

In court, Ellen's lawyer argued that she was a victim, driven to the unthinkable, with nowhere else to turn.

The court ruled that Abie's addiction had driven her to psychological trauma and the murder and gave a verdict of Not Guilty.

She took a life, it was murder - of her own son. Was it the correct verdict?

Her life was threatened, she had nowhere to turn to protect herself or get help. It was him or her. Was it the correct verdict?

Are there extenuating circumstances where it's okay to kill? What do you think?

Channels in this post: Crime + Investigation

12 Comments

miss dikobe
28 Apr 2010 10:04

damn! i think she did whats best for herself.
it is the same case as one of those stories wherein the husband abuses the wife up to a point where she cant take it anymore! best example being Charlize Theron's mother!

Mathaz
28 Apr 2010 10:28

In my books there is no justification for murder but in this case i understand why she did, she indeed was abused to the point where she had no love but hatred for her son. It's so hard for parents who have kids addicted to drugs/ alcohol and to get support as well is difficult as people tend to shun the victims and it's also a shame to talk about your internal domestic issues with other people.

On 12 September 2007, Abie came home drugged and fell asleep. She strangled him with a rope. Is it then premediated??

His father wasn't around to protect her, no-one supported her. If men were to take their rightful places in the community and know their identity, we would not be going through so much pain. Every social ill in this world begins with men who do not know who they are and who do not have a vision for themselves and their families.

This is a sad case, how can you live with yourself knowing that you have murdered your child?? Shame the mother is in hell of her own, unless if she has totally forgiven herself...

TheLady
28 Apr 2010 12:16

"On 12 September 2007, Abie came home drugged and fell asleep. She strangled him with a rope. Is it then premediated?? " I'm wondering the same.

Sometimes the justice system pushes us over the edge.

FK
28 Apr 2010 12:54

It is never okay to kill.

For how long was this Abie on Tik / drugs? I might be wrong but I want to believe that he did not wake up one morning and was addicted to drugs. It started long time ago. What did the mother / father do? Like I said, I don't know the full story so with the little I know I want to say this, we parents fail our kids (anything under 16 is a child). We don't discipline them, we don't enforce rules, we let them do as they please and when they are old enough and out of control, then it is too late to enforce discipline.

She was on Kaya FM this morning and she mentioned that she gave him money earlier on that day before killing him.

TheLady
28 Apr 2010 13:34

Oh Tash...those Uggs!!! I think I have to squeeze my thick calves in there!!!

FK
28 Apr 2010 20:55

For how long was this Abie on Tik / drugs?

I got my answer, He dropped out of school when he was 14 and started smoking dagga then moved to TIK.

this is so sad

FK
28 Apr 2010 21:02

The father was there, but forever drunk. This TIK is apparently worse than cocaine. You can be on a high for more than 24hours. One boy who was also addicted to TIK asked if his mother can have sex with him. How sick is that?

What Im struggling with is, when Ellen found out that his son is a drug addict, why didnt she find professional help? Instead, they are showing us her kicking him out of the house into a shack at the back of their house when he was 17 (3 years later).

FK
28 Apr 2010 21:13

Shame, this women's life was in danger. After being banished into the tin shack, he would be violent and he was once stabbed by his mom using a knife. He would smash the doors to extend that she put a burglar gate to her bedroom. He smashed windows and took things from the house to support his addict.

This is just too sad. Even when these addicts quit TIK, they end up with things like paranoia and schizo. One other boy quit and 3 years later, his mom found him dead. He hanged himself.

FK
28 Apr 2010 21:22

OMG - the mother also had a terrible upbringing. She was sodomised when she was 4 yrs. A relative would come over the weekends and he would share a bed with Ellen. Ellen's parents were also drunkards. This carried on until and she was repeatedly gangraped before she turned 13.

She ran away from home at 13 thinking that the streets would be better. In fact, it was worse. She went back home. So that was her childhood.

Her marriages did not make it easier either - she was also abused by her husbands (don't ask I did not hear how many husbands).

Sorry I cant watch this any further. This is just too much for a human being.

goldii
29 Apr 2010 08:42

As horrified as I was by her life story( the growing up part) there was something about how her story was told that did'nt seem right. I got a feeling somethings were not said that should have been said either now or during her court case.

There is something about this story or the way it was told that was ........ I don't know, but things did'nt make sense, the court case, the lack of investigation, how she got away ........... there were holes you could strain trucks thru.

This story was too one sided

Cande
30 Apr 2010 08:18

tjo!

tiego
30 Apr 2010 10:49

WARNING:This is going to be very long!

it's very sad,and I think everyone of us knows that the mother isn't happy with what she did.This will probably haunt her forever.I think that when you're not in that situation,you might think you know how she feels...or how best you think the situation could've been handled,but that's not realistic at all if you're not in the victim's shoes.We all know that the Police,the Social Service do so little or nothing at all to protect the victims in many.many cases.The laws are there,but do they make sure they're enforced?NO!The fear,the helplessness,the anger will drive you mad,coz u've got nowhere to go/run.

And yes,the upbringing does matter in some cases,but how many of us know of women batterers that were raised by 2 good,loving parents?I know a few.

Most successful people today had a bad upbringing.But look at them now.All because they loved themselves,they spoke to someone about their troubles.They chose friends that motivated them.They chose the right route for a better future.

I was raised in a violent house-hold.I had sleepless nights almost every day of my life.It didn't matter if it was exam time,school night or whatever...the radio will be on all night and the screaming in the house was so unbearable.But I never failed a grade,I was one of the best students in my class coz I made means to study with the little time I had in my hands to do so.I didn't lose any respect for my mother despite what was going on.I now have a decent job and that helped my mother to move out and start afresh.Now my siblings don't have to go through what I've went through.Use any negative thing you could be going through as your motivation to succeed and you'll beat it.