Bever Brothers Familicide: Motives, Mental Illness, and Juvenile Justice

Introduction: The Broken Arrow Case

One of the most heinous familicide cases in American history occurred in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma in 2015. Two brothers, aged 16 and 18, tortured and killed their parents and three of their five siblings. The older brother, Robert, has been widely considered to be the mastermind of the murder plot and coerced his younger brother into helping him (Youngman & Jensen, 2018, p. 1). Both brothers received multiple life sentences in a trial that concluded in 2018. Robert had pleaded guilty in 2016, and the younger brother Michael was tried separately ("Michael Bever, Okla. teen, guilty of fatally stabbing parents, 3 younger siblings," 2018). In fact, half of the jurors in the younger brother's trial "sent the judge a letter asking that Michael Bever get the chance to go free one day" (Silman, 2018, p. 1). The Broken Arrow case shows how two brothers who collaborated on the same crime operated with vastly different motives and intent.

Given how horrific the case is, it may be easy to dismiss the psychological issues and environmental causes that precipitated the familicide. However, criminologists need to thoroughly assess the situation, taking into account the multiple interrelated variables that led up to the crime. The Broken Arrow incident showcases the importance of environmental cues, including child abuse but also broader social norms embedded in the surrounding society. Younger brother Michael does seem to have acted more out of coercion — if not outright fear of his older brother — which, had he been an adult, might have made him appear even more culpable given the lack of evidence of mental illness in his case. The fact that Michael was only sixteen at the time of the crime demonstrates the relevance of a separate juvenile justice system, suggesting that trying juveniles as adults can indeed prove problematic. As Heide (2016, p. 1) notes, "adolescents are more likely to kill because the normal turbulence of adolescence runs up against constraints they perceive have been placed upon them in a setting of limited alternatives." The main factors to consider in the Broken Arrow case include the unique features of juvenile familicide, the role of child abuse and related trauma, and the role mental illness plays in cases like these.

Motives and Patterns of Familicide

The Broken Arrow case bears almost all the signs of a typical familicide, which is an overwhelmingly male phenomenon as well as a primarily white one (Fegadel & Heide, 2016; Whiteley, Terrell, & Bodman, 2016). The Bever brothers were in fact white males, albeit slightly younger than the average perpetrator in familicide cases, which is 26 years of age (Fegadel & Heide, 2016). However, juvenile perpetrators are not uncommon (Fegadel & Heide, 2016). While guns and other firearms are the most commonly used weapons in familicide cases, research based on the National Incident-Based Reporting System shows that "firearms predominated as murder weapons in these incidents; however, when a biological mother was one of the victims, offenders used more diverse methods" (Fegadel & Heide, 2016, p. 6). In the Broken Arrow case, the brothers used diverse methods, with knives serving as the main murder weapon. Interestingly, the brothers had ordered guns and ammunition "to be delivered to their home the day after their family was killed" (Couri, 2016, p. 1). The brothers had been plotting to kill their parents long before, with Robert apparently "planning to kill his parents since he was 13," using weapons like knives and axes (Couri, 2016, p. 1). Robert claimed he wanted to execute the plan before the arrival of the ammunition shipment because he "didn't want any interference" (Silman, 2016, p. 1). By interference, Robert may have meant his own inexperience with guns — which they had not had access to before — or he may have feared the shipment would draw attention when it arrived. Familicide cases are "usually committed in the victim's house," as was true in this case (Bourget, Gagne, & Labelle, 2007, p. 306).

In addition to stabbing their family members, both brothers tortured them. Most notably, younger brother Michael initiated the sequence of events that culminated in the five-person murder by luring his then-13-year-old sister into their room. Robert then "tried to slit her throat," but she escaped and ran to alert her other brothers and sisters. Michael then chased his sister down and choked her, but she remarkably survived and became one of the primary witnesses in the case. Moreover, Michael lured the youngest siblings out of their rooms by "telling them he was in danger, and then he stabbed them to death" (Silman, 2018, p. 1). Michael's actions during the drawn-out incident suggest that he did not have second thoughts, and he deserves to be considered at least as equally culpable as his older brother. As Silman (2018) also points out, both brothers participated in the stabbing of the parents. One of the features that sets the Broken Arrow case apart from other familicide cases is the presence of two perpetrators; cases involving multiple perpetrators are rare (Fegadel & Heide, 2016).

Premeditation, Delusional Thinking, and Mental Illness

Premeditation is another defining feature of the Broken Arrow murders. Like most familicide cases, this incident was premeditated (Mailloux, 2014) — not over a matter of months, but over years. "Robert Bever said he'd been planning to kill his parents since he was 13" (Couri, 2016, p. 1). The specific details of their familicide would have been worked out in the months prior to the event, as documents entered into evidence at trial showed that the brothers "planned the murders for weeks or months" (Silman, 2018, p. 1). Both brothers demonstrated a "fascination with murder" and "admired mass shooters" (Couri, 2016, p. 1). The Bever parents apparently knew of their sons' morbid fascination with murder, yet neither parent seemed to act on this knowledge. The mother said "they were simply boys being boys," and the father dismissed their homicidal ideations entirely (Couri, 2016, p. 1). The parents' reaction to their eldest sons' cognitions reflects the degree of neglect the Bever brothers experienced, and which contributed to their antisocial attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. For example, "the brothers said there were too many people in the world," and Robert told one of the detectives in the case "if he killed enough people, he would eventually kill someone who was not contributing to society, which would be a good thing" (Couri, 2016, p. 1).

Delusional thinking appears to be one of the key factors, at least in Robert's psyche. "Robert Bever told detectives he admired serial killers and mass shooters and said he believed killing more than one person would make him 'God-like'" (Couri, 2016, p. 1). Moreover, Robert demonstrated inappropriate affect throughout the investigation, such as having "laughed and chuckled frequently while telling the story, becoming mildly excited at parts" (Couri, 2016, p. 1). Similarly, Salinger (2016) states that Michael "appeared to be laid back and mildly excited to tell the story" (p. 1). Robert did reveal a shocking shift at one point, however: he "broke down in tears when shown a picture of one of the bloodied murder weapons," saying in court, "That's a lot of blood... I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking" (Youngman & Jensen, 2018, p. 1). Interestingly, it was Michael's defense that centered on mental health rather than Robert's, given that the latter openly and proudly confessed to the crime (Querry, 2018). Given Robert's state of mind and attitude toward the crime and murder in general, it would seem that mental illness was the most important factor in the familicide.

Robert is currently "on medication and has been diagnosed with major depressive disorder, PTSD, and borderline personality disorder" (Youngman & Jensen, 2018, p. 1). The most common diagnosis in cases of familicide is schizophrenia, but depressive and psychotic disorders are also implicated (Bourget, Gagne, & Labelle, 2007, p. 306). Mental health issues and previous domestic violence experiences are factors shared by almost all similar instances of familicide (Whiteley, Terrell, & Bodman, 2016, p. 1).

References

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Couri, R. (2016, February 24). Warning: Graphic details from testimony in Bever brothers hearing. KRMG.

Fegadel, A. R., & Heide, K. M. (2016). Offspring-perpetrated familicide. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 61(1), 6–24. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624x15589091

Heide, K. M. (2016). Why kids kill parents. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/articles/199209/why-kids-kill-parents

Mailloux, S. (2014). Fatal families: Why children are killed in familicide occurrences. Journal of Family Violence, 29(8), 921–926. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-014-9643-0

Michael Bever, Okla. teen, guilty of fatally stabbing parents, 3 younger siblings. (2018, May 10). CBS News. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/michael-bever-okla-teen-guilty-of-fatally-stabbing-parents-three-younger-siblings/

News Corp Australia Network. (2018, May 11). Teen Michael Bever who helped brother Robert kill family found guilty in Oklahoma. News.com.au. https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/teen-michael-bever-who-helped-brother-robert-kill-family-found-guilty-in-oklahoma/news-story/20851c6cf361f853739f810a8247501

Querry, K. (2018, May 8). Testimony in Broken Arrow murder trial delayed. Oklahoma News 4. https://kfor.com/2018/05/08/testimony-in-broken-arrow-murder-trial-delayed/

Salinger, T. (2016, February 23). Oklahoma teen "laughed" while describing killing five family members as part of brothers' gruesome mass murder plan. New York Daily News. https://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/okla-teens-killed-family-part-mass-murder-plan-article-1.2541695

Silman, J. (2018, August 10). Brother who killed five family members in brutal Oklahoma stabbings given five life sentences. Oxygen Crime Time. https://www.oxygen.com/crime-time/michael-bever-family-murder-five-life-sentences

Tosini, D. (2017). Familicide in Italy: An exploratory study of cases involving male perpetrators (1992–2015). Journal of Interpersonal Violence. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517714436

Whiteley, M., Terrell, N., & Bodman, D. A. (2016). Familicide. Encyclopedia of Family Studies. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119085621.wbefs390

Youngman, C., & Jensen, A. (2018, May 4). Robert Bever sobs in younger brother's murder trial: "I don't know what I was thinking." Fox 25 News. https://okcfox.com/news/local/robert-bever-sobs-in-brothers-murder-trial-i-dont-know-what-i-was-thinking