He Idolized American Psycho So He Became One

In January 2007, 16-year-old Ethan Allen Windom committed a horrific crime in Boise, Idaho: he killed his mother, Judy, while she slept. Armed with a homemade club and a knife, he attacked her in an act that shocked his community and left a family shattered.

Ethan wasn’t a hardened criminal. He was a teenager struggling with depression, anxiety, and what experts later said may have been the onset of a severe psychotic disorder.

He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and, despite being just 16, was sentenced to life in prison without parole. His case has since been part of larger debates in the U.S. justice system about how we punish juveniles, especially those suffering from serious mental illness.