Interview with ex-husband of Andrea Yates, mother who drowned her children - AP Archive (28 Jul 2006)

SHOTLIST 1. Various of Andrea Yates in court during sentencing 2. Various of judge and lawyers 3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rusty Yates, ex-husband: “I don’t forget my children, and I don’t forget Andrea, but I don’t dwell on it either. I try to remember my children fondly, I’m building a new life, I’m busy at work, remarried and have a new family and am more focused on them.’’ 4. Yates leaving courtroom 5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rusty Yates, ex-husband: “In the first trial they said Andrea did this to try to get out, whatever that means, which sounded like she wasn’t happy at home and it was a bad situation at home and wanted to get out, and this time they said she wanted to run off with me into the sunset. Well, which is it, you know? The fact is, they spent five years and still don’t have a reason why she did it because they are unwilling to look at the fact she was psychotic. That’s the only reasonable explanation for her behaviour.“ 6. Still photo Yates family 7. SOUNDBITE: (English) Rusty Yates, ex-husband: “They’re refusing to see the obvious, you know, they’re refusing to see the obvious. She was a sick woman. She was insane. She was psychotic. She believed she was saving her children, you know? Here is a woman with a perfect record, she had never been in any trouble in her life you know. Everyone who knows her, everyone who knew her supports her. Everyone knows what a great mother she was and how out of character this was for her.“ 8. Yates leaving court (mute) STORYLINE: The former husband of a woman who drowned their five children has lashed out at prosecutors who spent five years pursuing murder charges against his ex wife. In an interview with the Associated Press, Rusty Yates said prosecutors seemed to change their theory about her motive. On Wednesday a jury in Houston, Texas, found 42-year-old Andrea Yates not guilty by reason of insanity in the June 2001 bathtub drownings of her children. She was retried after her 2002 murder conviction was overturned because of erroneous testimony. ``In the first trial, they said Andrea did this to try to get out, whatever that means, which sounded like she wasn’t happy at home ... and this time they said she wanted to run off with me into the sunset,’’ he said. ``Well, which is it? On Thursday, Yates was committed to the maximum-security North Texas State Hospital in Vernon. Hospital officials will review her mental state and decide whether she is a danger to society. State District Judge Belinda Hill will consider that report and hold a hearing within 30 days to determine if Yates should remain there, or be moved to another state hospital. Rusty Yates, an engineer at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, said he plans to visit his ex-wife regularly, but his role in her life will diminish as he moves on with his own. He remarried in March and now has two stepsons. ``I don’t forget my children and I don’t forget Andrea,“ he said, “but I don’t dwell on it either. I try to remember my children fondly. I’m building a new life and have a new family and am more focused on them.’’ For his ex-wife to ever be released from state care will require a complicated evaluation process. Experts say it can take decades before psychiatrists decide a patient is healthy enough to leave and even then a judge can reject those findings. The defence lawyers never disputed that Andrea Yates drowned her children, but they said she suffered from severe postpartum psychosis and, in a delusional state, believed Satan was inside her.