Spencer Pratt, the reality TV personality and former Los Angeles mayoral candidate, has sparked backlash after comparing mothers who kill their children to dangerous pit bulls he said should be removed from society.
His remarks came after 22-year-old New York mother Dimone Fleming was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect in the November 2022 deaths of her two young sons.
Both prosecutors and Fleming’s attorney, with Fleming now 26, agreed during the case that she was experiencing postpartum psychosis at the time of the killings.
The same psychiatric defense has also been raised by Massachusetts mother Lindsay Clancy in her closely watched case involving the alleged murders of her three children.
Posting on X on Saturday, Pratt wrote: “When a pit bull kills a kid, we exterminate them. Theres [sic] no judgment behind it: we know it’s an impulse they couldn’t control.”
He went on to argue that even if someone’s actions are driven by uncontrollable impulses, society must still respond when those impulses result in children being killed.
“Judgment aside, you just cannot be trusted and you need to be locked away forever,” Pratt continued. “As a parent…if you kill your kids, your life is over anyway, so IDK what we are doing here.”
The comments landed amid a growing national conversation about postpartum psychosis, a rare but severe mental health condition that has drawn renewed attention because of Clancy’s high-profile trial.
Former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt weighed in on the debate around post partum psychosis and criminal responsibility after a mom with the condition was cleared of murdering her two children by reason of insanity
Dimone Fleming, 22, was found not responsible for the killings of her two sons, three-year-old Daishawn Fleming (pictured) and 11-month-old Octavius Canada
Her case has been compared to Massachusetts mom Lindsay Clancy, who has argued that she suffered from postpartum psychosis when she killed her three young children
Postpartum psychosis afflicts roughly one to two per 1,000 women after delivery, per the Cleveland Clinic.
Fleming was accused of stabbing her sons, 11-month-old Octavius Canada and three-year-old Daishawn Fleming, before submerging them in a bathtub at the Bronx shelter where they lived.
Like Clancy, Fleming had been receiving treatment for depression and anxiety before her respective children’s deaths, per court records obtained by the New York Times.
Fleming was working at a concession stand in Queens and living in a shelter in the Mount Hope neighborhood of the Bronx with her sons.
She had been diagnosed with major depressive disorder and prescribed psychotropic medication by doctors.
Fleming was instead using marijuana on a daily basis, which in turn amplified her symptoms.
Psychiatrist Dr Eric Goldsmith, who evaluated Fleming at the prosecution’s request, wrote in a report that she was ‘grossly psychotic and out of touch with reality’ on the night her sons were killed.
Goldsmith reported that the mom-of-two was hallucinating, believed the world was coming to an end and that a spirit had invaded her body.
A forensic psychiatric report written by doctors from the defense said Fleming thought her actions ‘were necessary to protect or cleanse her children.’
Fleming was accused of repeatedly stabbing her two young sons, Daishawn and Octavius (pictured), before submerging them in a bathtub at the Bronx shelter where they lived
Both sides in Clancy’s case agreed that Clancy strangled her children, Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan, in January 2023 before attempting to take her own life
Prosecutors did not aggressively seek to convict Fleming, who had originally been charged with first-degree murder.
Tiffany Wichman, a Bronx assistant district attorney, said that ‘prosecuting mothers does not and cannot prevent these crimes from happening, but public discourse might.’
‘People talking about it is important, and I hope people continue talking about it,’ Wichman said.
Fleming’s lawyer, Jodi Morales, called the result of the case ‘a result of collaboration.’
‘Everybody recognized what we were dealing with here,’ Morales said. ‘That doesn’t happen often when you’re on opposite sides of the table.’
Going forward, Fleming could be held at a high-security hospital for an initial six months. That would be extended indefinitely if her condition does not improve.
If doctors find her to be mentally ill but not dangerous, she could also be sent to a more open hospital for further evaluation.
Fleming could also be discharged if she is found to be mentally fit. However, the court would likely place conditions on her freedom.
In Clancy’s case, prosecutors have insisted that she intentionally planned the killings of her children, Cora, five, Dawson, three, and eight-month-old Callan, on January 24, 2023.
Clancy’s defense has argued that she suffered from postpartum psychosis when she killed her three kids and then unsuccessfully tried to take her own life. She remains paralyzed from the waist down.
Clancy pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility in her murder trial
Clancy is still waiting for the 12-person jury to return a verdict in her trial, with jurors having been allowed home for the weekend. Deliberations are expected to resume Monday morning
Clancy has pleaded not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility. Both sides agree that she strangled her children.
The killings happened less than three weeks after Clancy was discharged from a psychiatric hospital.
She had also been prescribed more than a dozen psychiatric medications across different health providers.
The 12-person jury began deliberating Thursday afternoon. First-degree murder, second-degree murder or manslaughter charges can all be considered.
On Friday, they asked to see the knife that Clancy used to try to take her life, as well as bags of pill bottles found in her home.
Judge William Sullivan allowed them to go home for the weekend after they failed to reach a verdict.
Deliberations are scheduled to continue on Monday at 9am ET.
Our News Outlet has reached out to Pratt for comment.
