Exemplification Essay: The Stockholm Syndrome Case

Stockholm syndrome
Stockholm syndrome is a phenomenon in which hostages begin to empathize and sympathize with their captor. They begin to have positive feelings for their captor and even sometimes to the point that that the victim will refuse to even testify against their captor. This has also been called Capture bonding. The phenomenon got its name after a 1972 bank robbery, where employees had been held hostage for 6 days. The hostages ultimately ended up bonding with the bank robbers, and resisted recue. They also refused to testify, and raised money for their captor’s defense.
The first case that I looked at was one of the most famous cases of Stockholm syndrome. Patty Hearst was kidnapped on February 4, 1974 from the apartment she shared with her boyfriend Stephen Weed. The kidnappers were Donald DeFreeze, Bill Harris, Emily Harris and Willie Wolfe. This was a well-planned combat exercise

that went off, without a hitch. There were eye witnesses, but none could give a precise identification. Patty was 19 years old, and was picked out specifically because of who she was. Patty Hearst is the granddaughter of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst. The people that kidnapped Patty were later identified themselves as “Symbionese Liberation Army” or “SLA”. This was a group of college students that were unhappy with the government at the time. They were unhappy with the way things were happening in Vietnam and in America, and wanted to incite guerrilla war against the US government. Their main goal was to destroy the capitalist state of the United States of America. The group was multi-racial, there were both men and women in authority. They came from all back grounds, and all of them with the exception of their leader Donald “Cinque” DeFreeze has some form of college education. They all seemed to be mentally stable. They were just dissatisfied with the way their country was moving. During the 70’s there was a lot of protesting, and lot of violence towards the students, and towards the citizens of the country. I don’t feel that, this kidnapping was the act of a persons with mental health issues. I believe this was an act of a group of people that didn’t care who was hurt. They wanted an outcome, and felt that kidnapping Patty Hearst would force her family to get them what they wanted. The main goal was to take from the rich and give to the poor.
The first part of Patty’s captivity, she was kept in a closet. She was kept blind folded and was raped repeatedly by Donald DeFreeze and Willie “Cujo” Wilde, and re-educated. There was a real fear of death of she did not get the answers to the questions right. So, not learning the new indoctrination was not a choice. She was constantly berated, and called “bourgeoise bitch”, and her father a fascist pig. Then, she would be fed, and cared for. This went on for 59 days. Day 60, Patty was then removed from the closet and renamed Tania. Patty is made to make a recording, that states that she has changed her name of her feel will, and was given a choice to either move to a safe place or stay and fight, and she will stay and fight. This brakes her father’s heart. Patty is now completely under the control of her captors, and she is told she was going to help in a bank robbery. If she did not do as she is told, and stand where she was told she would be killed on site. This was to be the Hibernia bank robbery day 71 of captivity. Patty Hearst was held for a total of 592 days. One the day she was rescued or captured, depending on where you stand on this case. She was still completely under her captor’s control. On that day, almost all of the original members were dead. Donald DeFreeze, and Willie Wolfe and four others were dead. They were killed on day 103, in Compton Ca., by the L.A. police department. Bill and Emily Harris were arrested jogging near the safe house they were hiding in, in San Francisco on September 18, 1975. That same day Patty and one other SLA member, Wendy Yoshimura were arrested in a safe house in nearby Daly City. She was only with one SLA member at the time of arrest, and even ran for a gun when the police came into the home. It took her two weeks alone in prison, with the help of two psychologist’s. To realize she was free from her captors and to think her own thoughts again.
In this case, I see why the SLA were upset. The individuals felt outraged and dejected that the students and the soldiers were not more important to the US government. Because they needed more understanding and authenticity for what was really happening in Vietnam. They wanted to feel more empowered and satisfied, that their views were being heard, and that all involved could be safe. However, I do not believe that this was the way to achieve their goal. I don’t believe that taking this college student, and abusing her, just because she came from a family of privilege was the answer. These SLA group members were afforded some of the same benefits that Patty Hearst was. They all went to college. They all came from families with middle class incomes. So, who were they, to decide what dollar figure made the difference in who gets tortured and raped, and who doesn’t? Who dies, and who doesn’t.
The only SLA members charged in the Patty Hearst kidnapping, rape and torture were Bill Harris and Emily Harris. It was a plea deal, so many charges were dropped. Bill got 7 years and Emily Harris got 8 years.
The other case that I looked at was the Jaycee Dugard. Jaycee was kidnapped from the bus stop by her home in Lake Tahoe, Ca. on June 10, 1991 she was 11 years old. Jaycee was held for 18 years. She was kidnapped by Phillip and Nancy Garrido. Phillip Garrido was a convicted rapist. His first offence was rape in 1972 when her raped a 14 year old girl, but did not serve any jail time as the victim would not testify. His next offence was on Nov 22, 1976. He kidnapped and raped Katie Callaway. She was held for 8 hours, before police came upon the scene. He received a sentenced of 50 years. After serving 10 years, he was paroled, labeled a sex offender and put on lifetime parole. Phillip was on supervised parole when he committed this crime. Phillip suffers from mental health issues. Jaycee reported that he would often hear auditory voices, during their “runs”. “Runs: were when Phillip would lock Jaycee and himself in one of the sheds and he would raped her multiple times over hours and days. Phillip was smoking methamphetamine at the time, so it is unclear if this was drug induced or a facet of his mental disorder. He would tell her that she was helping him to not hurt any other girls. After these runs were over, he would often cry and ask her to hold him and comfort him. There are some documents that indicate that his mental disorders stemmed from the constant use of LSD, in earlier years, but it is unclear (L.A. Times, Sept. 1, 2009). The psychologists in this case do say that Phillip is mentally ill. However all of Phillips psychological evaluations were sealed, because the judge ruled it could prejudice any future insanity case for Phillip. (DailyMail.com Feb. 4, 2011)
Phillip was assisted by Nancy in planning out the crime and kidnapping Jaycee. Nancy also would go to parks and make video tapes of children playing and even went so far as to have young girls come into the back of her van and preform gymnastic moves, and make video tapes of them, so she could take them back to Phillip. (YouTube Aug. 3, 2011) Nancy would often become jealous of Jaycee, and say things like Jaycee wanted Phillip to rape her. (ABC News, Diane Sawyer, YouTube July 12, 2011) Nancy’s lawyer, Stephen Tapson implied that possibly Nancy also suffered from Stockholm syndrome, but I did not find anything that showed if that was determined. I also, did not find anything that indicated that Nancy suffered from mental illness. Phillip Garrido received a sentence of 431 years, and Nancy received a sentence of 36 years.
I do not feel any empathy for either defendant in this case. If anything, when you look at the devotion Nancy had for Phillip. You see apprehension, that possibly if she didn’t accept Phillips life style, then their intimacy as a couple would be gone. It’s just human nature to judge their horrific actions as unacceptable.
The juror part of this exercise has caused me some difficulty. This is why, I researched two cases. The defendants have pled out before the victim could testify in both cases. I know that the definition of Stockholm syndrome states, that the victim usually doesn’t want to testify. That they protect their captors. That was not what would have happened in either of these cases, if the victims would have been given the opportunity.
If there would have been a trial, and I would have been given the opportunity to server on the jury the facts I provided would have been available, as well as the following:
If Patty Heart would have been able to testify, she would have done so, not only to seek justice for the abuse she suffered at the hands of the SLA group.

Patty would have also, helped bring out evidence in her case that proved she was not acting of her own free will when the Hibernia bank robbery occurred. Patty was the only one charged in the robbery.
In Jaycee’s case, she was ready to testify as well. Jaycee had already met with the prosecutor and stated that she was willing to testify. Although she was concerned for her two daughters, because they would have to testify as well. Again, there was no sign of loyalty for her captors, when it came to the injustices that were placed upon her. Jaycee, did feel loyalty to Phillip as her children’s father, but it stopped there. When it came to Nancy, she called her “Just as evil as Phillip” (ABC News, Diane Sawyer, YouTube July 12, 2011

23:50).
I would have voted guilty in both cases. In Patty Hearst’s case, I would have pointed out the all the news documents, video and print. The FBI and the local police all had evidence and there were witnesses. Stephen Weed and the next door neighbor that were with Patty when she was kidnapped.
In Jaycee’s case, I would have pointed out that she was found with Phillip Garrido. Jaycee’s two children, were proven to be Phillip Garrido’s children by DNA. There were also witnesses, and like the parole officers that saw her in the Garrido’s home.
In today’s society the numbers of incarcerated America’s is at an all-time high. One in every one hundred American’s are in prison. America is currently spending 50 billion dollars a year on our corrections system.(MSNBC Morning Joe May 6, 2015) As of 2012, 356,268 inmates with mental illness were reported to be housed in America’s jails and prisons. (Washington Post, Swanson A. Apr.30, 2015) Most of them are kept in solitary confinement to keep them from hurting others. Which results in many cases of them committing suicide. So, I would say No. The mentally ill in some cases, cannot be held accountable. If they are severely ill, then they are not aware that their actions have consequences. The rest of society has no excuse. As a child I was taught many things from a young age. The “Golden rule”, stay in line, keep your hands to yourself, say please and thank you, and be home when the street lights come on. If I did not follow these rules there would be consequences. We have become a society that takes no responsibility for its actions. There’s no win or lose anymore. Everything has to be done so as not to offend. In my opinion we have erased all responsibility. Now we are wondering what happened. I think we can do better for each other.