SSRI Stories has confirmed that this woman was taking Celexa and was in a 7 day withdrawal at the time of the incident.
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Woman distraught by custody fight accused of killing sons
Matty Curry
The Associated Press
RICHARDSON, Texas A second-grade
teacher, distraught over a custody battle,
strangled her two sons and then tried to kill
herself two days later, authorities said
Wednesday.
Lisa Marie Smith, 31, was charged with
two counts of capital murder shortly after
being released from the Dallas hospital
where she was treated for burns and a cut
on her left wrist.
Smith looked pained and kept her back
turned to television cameras as she
appeared in court Wednesday afternoon.
She was being held on suicide watch, with
bond set at $2 million.
Firefighters found William Cody Smith,
5, and Tristen Thomas Smith, 3, dead in a
bed Tuesday after a man in the neighbor-
hood reported smoke coming from the
home. Smith was on the floor next to them.
Police Sgt. Jim Hammond said investiga-
tors, who have talked to Smith and her
friends believe that the children were stran-
gled Sunday night after they opened Christ-
mas presents and ate pizza.
Hammond said that officers haven’t
pieced together the mother’s actions
between Sunday night and Tuesday, when
they believe she disconnected a gas line
from the back of a kitchen stove in an
attempt to kill herself. Police believe a fire
might have been ignited by the pilot light on
the water heater.
Investigators at first said they thought
the fire was set to cover up evidence, but
they now believe it resulted from Smith’s
attempt to kill herself with the gas.
Authorities said Smith had been upset
over losing custody of her sons to her for-
mer husband.
The boys lived with their father after the
couple divorced but were visiting their
mother at the time of the fire.
Six months ago, police went to the fami-
ly’s one-story red brick home after getting a
call about a “possible suicidal person.”
A doctor told police at the time that
Smith was suicidal because she had lost
custody of her children.
Jerrell Walker, assistant principal of
Richardson Heights Elementary School,
said Smith was well-regarded.
“She is a great teacher, and I wouldn’t
have hesitated to put my child in that class
because she was doing all the things she
needed to do. She read to the kids.