Christopher Pittman was convicted in 2005 of taking a pump-action shotgun and murdering his grandparents, Joe Frank Pittman and Joy Roberts Pittman, as they slept. Afterwards, Pittman, then 12 years old, set the house on fire and attempted to flee in his grandparents' SUV with the family golden retriever.
Pittman's defense centered around the prescription anti-depressant Paxil which he was taking at the time of the 2001 murders. Just days before the crime, Pittman's prescription was switched to Zoloft. His lawyers claimed that the change in medications created a chemical reaction within Pittman that caused him to become violent.
In April 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court refused, without comment, to hear Pittman's appeal, which centered around whether the drugs played a role in the murders, whether Pittman's sentence was excessive, and whether the boy should have ever been tried as an adult in the first place.
Pittman is imprisoned in an adult correctional facility in South Carolina. He turned 18 in 2008, and is not set to be released until he is in his mid-40s.
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References
Fast Facts
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Born
April 9, 1989 in Huntsville, Alabama
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Fact:
Pittman's mother abandoned him twice as a child
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Fact:
Pittman lost contact with his father in the years leading up to the murders
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Fact:
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Fact:
In 2004, the United States FDA required that antidepressants such as Zoloft needed to carry warning labels describing an increased risk of suicide in those under 18.
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Fact:
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Fact:
The U.S. Supreme Court banned the death penalty for underage killers in 2005
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Fact:
Pittman claimed his grandfather, or "Pop-Pop," beat him with a belt just before the murders
