"Her case is considered an atypical child killer by FBI profilers and criminal justice experts, primarily because of the calculated nature of her crimes, her lack of remorse, and her specific personality disorders. The case is often cited as a prominent example of filicide. Retired FBI agent and criminal profiler Candice DeLong has examined the case and highlighted what drove Downs to commit such a horrible crime."
"Downs shot her children to remove obstacles to her relationship with a married man, who told her he was not interested in being a father. This calculated and self-serving motive, essentially viewing her children as disposable, deviates from some more common profiles of maternal filicide often linked to mental illness or altruistic motives, a misguided belief that they are saving the child from a worse fate."
Diane Downs was convicted in 1984 for killing her 7-year-old daughter and attempting to kill her two other children in May 1983; she received a life sentence and was denied parole in 2008, 2010, 2020, and December 2025. FBI profilers and criminal justice experts categorize the case as atypical filicide because of calculated actions, lack of remorse, and personality disorders. Retired FBI agent Candice DeLong attributed the motive to narcissism and a desire to be with a man who did not want children rather than psychosis or altruistic reasons. The case informs criminological studies and true-crime analyses of maternal filicide, female psychopathy, and deceptive behavior.
Read at Psychology Today
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