Till Death Do Us Part: Kelly Ecker and Scott Samson

A bride sees many red flags in her relationship before walking down the aisle, but her fear of angering her fiancee would compel her to go through with the ceremony. Within hours, that decision would become fatal.

#domestic violence #coercive control

Resources:
"Murder-Suicide claims Indiana doctor, nurse on wedding night, police say", by Janet DiGiamcomo for CNN, Oct.. 9, 2014. 

"Indiana Doctor Kills His Wife and Himself on Wedding Night" by Steve Helling for People.com, Oct. 8 2014. 

Court Records, US District Court, Southern District of Indiana, Trustgard Insurance vs. Old National Wealth Management, Filed 2/24/17. 

Links:
The Council on Domestic Abuse, Terre Haute - www.codaterrehaute.org

To be connected with domestic violence and intimate partner violence organizations and resources in the U.S. you can go to thehotline.org, in the UK at womensAID.org.uk, in Australia 1800respect.org.au, and for an international directory go to hotpeachpages.net.

Relationship Red Flags:

Does your partner:

Yell, belittle or humiliate you?

Constantly criticize you and put you down?

Blame you for his/her own behavior?

Keep you isolated from your family and friends?

Control or limit your access to money, telephone access or a vehicle?

Follow of constantly check up on where you are, who you are with or what you are doing?

Destroy your belongings?

Force you to be intimate?
Threaten to harm you or him/herself if you leave?

Prevent you from working or having a career or your own?

If you or someone you know is involved in an abusive relationship, help is available. Please reach out to organizations like those listed above for help.Together with advocates that are trained to help, abuse victims can get help in putting together a plan for them and their children to leave a dangerous situation as safely as possible.