HUDSON OAKS, Texas, May 29, 2007

Mother Hangs Self And 4 Daughters

8-Month-Old Is Lone Survivor Of Apparent Murder-Suicide In Texas

  • Play CBS Video Video Mom, Kids Found Hanging

    Only On The Web: A woman and her four daughters were found hanging in a closet in their mobile home near Fort Worth, Texas. Amazingly, one of the children survived. Elisabeth Smick reports.

    • Filly Echeverria holds an undated family photo showing Gilberta Estrada and her daughters Maria Teresa Estrada, left, and Janet Frayre, in Hudson Oaks, Texas, Tuesday, May 29, 2007.

      Filly Echeverria holds an undated family photo showing Gilberta Estrada and her daughters Maria Teresa Estrada, left, and Janet Frayre, in Hudson Oaks, Texas, Tuesday, May 29, 2007.  (AP)

    • A body is wheeled out of a mobile home where a woman and her three daughters died, May 29, 2007. A fourth daughter, age 8 months, survived.

      A body is wheeled out of a mobile home where a woman and her three daughters died, May 29, 2007. A fourth daughter, age 8 months, survived.  (AP)

    • The mobile home where the bodies were found, May 29, 2007.

      The mobile home where the bodies were found, May 29, 2007.  (KTVT)

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  • Photo Essay Horror In Houston

    Andrea Yates not guilty by reason of insanity in shocking drowning deaths of her five children.

(CBS/AP)  A young mother who may have been depressed apparently hanged three of her small daughters and herself in a closet using pieces of clothing and sashes, authorities said Tuesday.

A fourth child, an 8-month-old daughter, was also found dangling in the closet but was rescued by her aunt from the family's mobile home.

"It's horrendous. That's all I can say," Parker County Sheriff Larry Fowler said.

The woman was identified as Gilberta Estrada, 25. The infant, Evelyn Frayre, was in good condition at a hospital, Fowler said. Authorities did not immediately identify the other children, but Fowler said they were apparently ages 5, 3 and 2.

Filly Echeverria, who said she was the children's godmother, identified the dead as Maria Teresa Estrada, Janet Frayre and Magaly Frayre.

Estrada and her girls were last seen alive Monday evening, Fowler said. The woman's sister had gone to check on her because she hadn't gone to work, Fowler said. The woman works at a local Wendy's restaurant, CBS station KTVT reports.

Estrada's sister discovered the baby was still alive when she made a noise, authorities said. She called 911 and said through sobs that the infant was dying. She and her daughter called back two more times to ask the ambulance to hurry, according to a tape of the calls.

The sheriff said the hangings appeared to be murder-suicide because the trailer's doors were locked from the inside and a relative said the woman had been depressed.

The young mother and her girls were last seen alive Monday evening, he said.

The sheriff said Estrada had won a temporary restraining order in August against Gregorio Frayre Rodriguez, who was believed to be the father of the infant and some of the other children, after an attack on Estrada.

The sheriff said the couple had stopped living together in February. Tuesday was the first emergency police call to Estrada's trailer, and authorities said there was no evidence that Frayre abused the girls.

A telephone listing for Frayre, 38, could not immediately be located.

"I just got a big kick out of watching the kids play over there on her porch, and today it's sad, very sad," neighbor Joyce Harris said as other trailer park residents milled about on their porches, some crying and talking softly about the deaths.

Estrada's trailer was dilapidated, with paint peeling off the brown and white mobile home. Cactus plants and a rose bush decorated the front. Toys and a bicycle littered the back yard.

Texas has seen a number of child killings by mothers in recent years.

Less than five years earlier, another Hudson Oaks family was torn apart when Dee Etta Perez, 39, shot her three children, ages 4, 9 and 10, before killing herself.

Andrea Yates drowned her five children in the family's Houston bathtub in 2001. In 2003, Deanna Laney beat her two young sons to death with stones in East Texas, and Lisa Ann Diaz drowned her daughters in a Plano bathtub. Dena Schlosser fatally severed her 10-month-old daughter's arms with a kitchen knife in 2004.

All four of those women were found innocent by reason of insanity. Yates initially was convicted of capital murder, but that verdict was overturned on appeal.

© MMVII, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Add a Comment See all 157 Comments
by gypsyartist7 June 1, 2007 8:15 PM EDT
It is amazing to read the lack of compassion and understanding for this woman's plight in many of these posts, and the amount of hindsight judgment for her based on individual experiences and feelings. We do not have enough information to judge, or condemn, this woman. However, we are individually empowered to right a wrong... if you think it was wrong what this woman did, try doing something to change: volunteering at a woman's shelter... starting a community support program for women in similar situations... treating the person behind the fast food counter with dignity and respect... just talking to a stranger who may look down & out.

A change in just one person can affect change in the destiny of a community, nation, and all humankind!
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by jori1368 June 1, 2007 1:23 AM EDT
When I was 25, I was diagnosed with a mental illness. At 26, I couldn't afford my medication, and became suicidal. At the time, my best bet seemed to me to kill my daughter first so she wouldn't be alone after I killed myself. Thank God that others saw my depression and stepped in. We have no way of knowing what this poor woman was thinking. I can't think of anything more horrible than harming one's own children, but I have been in that place. But for the grace of God, I could've been another headline...don't judge her, try and help others who may be in the same pain as she must have been in.
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by jcajc1 May 31, 2007 9:27 PM EDT
IAM 23 I HAVE FOUR KIDS BUT I WOULD NEVER HURT MY KIDS.SO I DONT UNDERSTAND WHAT SHE WAS THINKING WHEN SHE DID WHAT SHE DID.MY HEART GOES OUT TO THE FAMILY.BUT TO OTHER YOUNG MOTHERS WHO HAVE KIDS. THERE IS HELP IF YOU CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM.IF YOU ARE DEPRESSED GET HELP RIGHT AWAY.SO JUST BECAUSE SHE HAD KIDS AT 23 DOSENT MEAN SHE WAS A UNFIT MOTHER.NO ONE KNOWS WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH HER HEAD WHEN SHE KILLED HER SELF AND HER KIDS.ONLY GOD KNOWS WHY SHE DID IT.BUT SHE DIDNT HAVE TO DO WHAT SHE DID IF SHE WAS HAVING PROBLEMS.SO IT DOSENT MADDER IF SHE WAS 23 OR 25 WHEN SHE HAD FOUR KIDS THIS COULD HAPPEN AT ANY AGE.SO GET HELP RIGHT AWAY OR IF YOU SEE A FAMILY MEMBER OR A FRIEND WHO IS DEPRESSED GET THEM HELP.
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by runonthebus May 31, 2007 7:49 PM EDT
there is a website called aidpage.com for women without good fathers. i would have packed the kids up and moved out of state .... she could have adopted the children out if it was getting to be to much. my sad day!
Reply to this comment
by wiccantexan May 31, 2007 3:35 PM EDT
Apparently she DID try to get help. See below.
______________

When a pregnant Gilberta Estrada-Vega arrived with her children at the SafeHaven women's shelter last summer, the staff at the Fort Worth shelter figured the 25-year-old would be one of their success stories. But it didn't turn out that way.

http://www.kvue.com/news/top/stories/053107kvuedeadfolo-eh.89add.html
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 7:19 PM EDT
What is she thinking have 4 kids by the time she is 23 and can barely care for herself?
Posted by bequialife at 04:09 PM : May 30, 2007

We DON'T know what she was thinking, or whether she even thought she had the option of saying no. Maybe "no" would have lost her her man; maybe "no" was not medically available (insurance). Maybe "no" was not an option for a "good wife" whose job it is to procreate.

We don't know what she was thinking. We don't know if she felt she had options. We don't know.
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by bequialife May 30, 2007 7:09 PM EDT
to: ov442

Uh, no, society is not responsible for people, people are responsible for people. This county offers endless opportunities for people to do something, or enhance their lives, starting with free education until 17(or 18) years of age. Programs, and training opportunites available for inexpensive, sometimes free. Mistakes are preventable, especially this woman. What is she thinking have 4 kids by the time she is 23 and can barely care for herself?
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 6:55 PM EDT
So texan you are saying the kids were better off with the mother??? The father most likely didn't want the kids and I bet he would be more then happy to rid himself of the child support he was paying to this woman.
Posted by itwasntme000 at 03:33 PM : May 30, 2007

No, I'm saying that just handing them over to someone else is too simplistic; there are other factors involved. It's easy to say "hand them over," but it's useless. Come up with something more substantial than the pat response.

There is no legal separation in Texas, so he may or may not have been paying any child support. Again, a pat answer and simplistic supposition, but functionally useless.
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by itwasntme000 May 30, 2007 6:33 PM EDT
DONT HAVE KIDS IF YOU CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM..... THEY'RE ARE CHILDREN'S SERVICE CENTER FOR PEOPLE THAT CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM...Posted by cparton at 01:30 PM : May 30, 2007

To give them up would have required the father's consent; she can't just hand them over. And they likely would have then gone to the abusive spouse.

Try again.
Posted by WiccanTexan at 03:04 PM : May 30, 2007

So texan you are saying the kids were better off with the mother??? you are saying the kids are better off dead then with their father who was abusive to this woman??? (possibly abusive on one occasion or maybe many... dosen't matter). It also dosen't mean he would be abusive to the kids. ANyway tho that is not my point. The father most likely didn't want the kids and I bet he would be more then happy to rid himself of the child support he was paying to this woman.

AS YOU SO ELOQUENTLY PUT IT T-R-Y A-G-A-I-N
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 6:04 PM EDT
DONT HAVE KIDS IF YOU CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM..... THEY'RE ARE CHILDREN'S SERVICE CENTER FOR PEOPLE THAT CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM...Posted by cparton at 01:30 PM : May 30, 2007

To give them up would have required the father's consent; she can't just hand them over. And they likely would have then gone to the abusive spouse.

Try again.
Reply to this comment
by juptlur May 30, 2007 5:21 PM EDT
TO ov442:

I couldn't agree more.Not only are criminals but they are the only responsible for these incidents and the irony is that suicide and extended suicide
can happen to any human being including them.Nobody thinks that some time in his/her life will die by suicide but unfortunately suicide is a disease and can happen to perfect stable,patient and self-composed people when serotonin circuit in the brain doesn't work properly.It's infinite difficult to admit it.Also the disease of depression is infinite painful.All these things make people to deny and dehumanize these diseases,but these attitudes are the main reason that tragedies like this happen.And those who critisize are more likely to develop such diseases because they have stress,fear,fear of mental illness(psychophobia) and consequently low tolerance of these incidents,and thats a big IRONY!.The problem,as a result,is not going to be solved and i will see you in the next similar incident!
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by brittlynn03 May 30, 2007 4:44 PM EDT
As a daughter of a mother who committed suicide I can speak from experience on this issue. It's one thing to take your own life but another to bring your pain on your children. Love for your children is supposed to be unconditional never ending!! Who is to say that these beautiful girls wouldn't grow up and make something of themselves later in life? It was her choice to have those kids and they didn't choose to be brought into this world. People need to take reponsibilty for life and the choices you make. Both of my parents grew up a very hard life and not with much education but they made a better life for themselves for my brother and I. There is no excuse for what she did and why should society feel bad for her.We should feel sorry for the family and those poor little girls for not having a chance to experience life.
Reply to this comment
by cparton May 30, 2007 4:30 PM EDT
First of all I grew up very,very poor with 5 brothers,and 4 sisters ... My mother didnt kill us or herself.. I cant understand why people would have the nerve to ask everyone to give this gal a break... she needed to give herself a break... DONT HAVE KIDS IF YOU CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM..... THEY'RE ARE CHILDREN'S SERVICE CENTER FOR PEOPLE THAT CANT TAKE CARE OF THEM...I am a single mother that has been threw hell and back And I didnt kill my children..And yes I had depression after I had my youngest,but we made it threw it...as a family good,bad or whatever came up....THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS MADNESS....NONE!!!!!!!!!
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by ov442 May 30, 2007 3:07 PM EDT
I think Society needs to take responsibility for life, because the haves make life so hard for have nots, and they will forever refuse to allow themselves to understand it. People having deep depression do lots of things that people that Arent dont understand.
Why cant all the Critics stand up and go do something about people having difficulty with life. Go help instead of criticizing people with problems.
Why dont you??..because you dont care. You only speak up after the fact and with angry hate filled comments about how stupid or rotten she was and its all her fault she lost her mind, how you wouldnt have done that and you know how it is to be depressed and you know what life was like in her shoes...blah blah blah.
People who criticize victims are just criminals justifying their own actions.
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by robinc211 May 30, 2007 2:34 PM EDT
For Christ sake please show some compassion for this woman, Gilberta and her children. There is no way in hell you can support yourself and 4 children on min wage! Instead of "Being heroes over seas and for other nations" why don't we take care of our own. She loved her children and didn't want them to suffer through a life she was not able to provide for them and she didn't want to leave them alone without a mother. I sat and sobbed for them all. She doesn't need your judgement now, she needed your help when she was alive. Just be human and show kindness and love to those around you, that you know need it. Do they have to be family? No, just do the right thing.
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 1:32 PM EDT
From what I've researched, Hudson Oaks had 1,637 residents at the 2000 census. Hardly a community that would likely have state-of-the-art medical and psychological resources available close to home.
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 1:13 PM EDT
From other reports, the baby had a sweater sleeve wrapped around her neck, which would also account for her living. That would not have produced enough pressure, IMO, to kill her along with her light weight.
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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 12:38 PM EDT
For some reason, this woman felt that life was not worth living.She was a poor uneducated Mexican American single mother who lived in a trailer with her 4 babies by the time she was 25. What to look forward to for herself or those babies? Certainly not becoming popular college students. She wanted to end this because it was a worthless life and she would rather see her daughters dead than watch them grow up to realize what America had in store for them.
Posted by starshimmers

I disagree. Here in San Antonio, there are plenty of women in her circumstances. My own Mexican mother-in-law had 5 children, poor, usually alone because my FIL was a merchant seaman and gone a lot. But each of her children remember the love and strength she had, even in the hard times.

Each woman has her own coping skills, her own breaking point. In a smaller town, the resources of a larger city might not have been available. We simply don't know.
Reply to this comment
by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 12:33 PM EDT
(((IF SHE WAS ABUSED SHE COULD HAVE LEFT, THERE ARE PLACES TO HELP ABUSED WOMAN))) COULD she have had post partum (((YES AND SHE COULD HAVE GOTTEN HELP OR TALKED WITH HER PRIEST
Posted by Phoenix1218 at 09:25 AM : May 30, 2007

OMG, it's all so simple. Just walk away. Read up on your statistics. Most of the abused women who end up dead are killed AFTER they leave. Talk to a women's shelter. And who would have covered her medical expenses for post-partum treatment? You? And how do you know she even had a priest to go to? Not that an unmarried, celibate person would have a clue as to what she might have been going through. He'd have told her to reconcile and be an obedient wife in God's eyes. Which would also have likely included "keep being fruitful."

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by wiccantexan May 30, 2007 12:29 PM EDT
... working for a wage that barely pays rent (((DON'T COMPLAIN ABOUT LOW WAGES, GO TO SCHOOL AND GET AN EDUCATION IN ORDER TO GET A BETTER JOB
Posted by Phoenix1218 at 09:25 AM : May 30, 2007

And you'll be paying for that quality day care for those 4 children while she goes to school and works full time, right? Or will you leave it to the state (which has a long waiting list for such assistance)? Oh, and you'll be paying for school as well, right?
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