... Tik Tok challenge? Gotta wonder what would drive kids to such lengths, especially "adult" offspring.

and won't take no for an answer.

Someone targeting the "lost boys" of wealth in LA?
Either something seriously nasty in the high end supply, or this might be an Organized influence situation.
The *rump may be on to something, if those wealthy parents were politically connected or active against a certain right wing group.

But then again, this might be just coincidence - "Forget it, Jake - it's just Chinatown..."

On edit - the Sykes murder appears to be connected with the son's mental illness - however, if the man had been self-medicating, there could still be a link to a common high-end dealer.

maybe. it has a paul pelosi attacker vibe but the son seems likely.

We only hear about it when it involves someone famous. The adult child/parent relationship can be pretty volatile. Of all the human relationships, it is probably the most complicated.

drugs.

me :':your mother doesn't have any money, you want to slap me around?"

i haven't seen him since. it hurts her around christmas, but.......

Addicted to Meth and Fentanyl, he would come to our home, attempt arson, and verbally assault and threaten us.... yet he was not deemed a sufficient "threat to himself or others" to be detained for hospitalization or incarceration. There are no resources in my city able to protect him, or us, from a psychotic decompensation. Unless he ACTUALLY injures someone of does damage to property, he can not be committed.

I am happy to report that he has finally agreed to treat his brain disorder with biannual injections. His drug use is far less severe (no more meth). Our relationship is now safe and supportive. We were lucky, but recurrence is always part of the disease.

Parents are largely in the wilderness when this happens to a family.... caught between fear, abandonment, and hope.

My heart goes out to the friends and families of Bob and Michelle. We have all experienced the loss of a great talent who has made us smile since the days of Archie and Meathead.

I am sorry that your son and the rest of your family were not given assistance you needed in the past. I hope your son continues to remain healthier and happier, Thunderbeast.

I suspect it sometimes has to do with parents not knowing when to say “no”, even when the kids aren’t kids anymore. This isn’t to say these people deserve this because they’re bad parents. In some ways it’s the opposite. All of us want to give our kids the best in life; education, health, enough money to at least get them on their feet.

When you’re so wealthy there are no constraints to that giving, it can lead to the risk of raising offspring that simply are never stimulated or happy enough. If you don’t face any basic challenges earlier on, you don’t know how to cope when you’re older.

Even the smallest hurdles you later have to cross become a crisis. Alcohol feels good. Drugs feel good. It takes you away from the boredom… well until it doesn’t.

How many actors and singers do we see that succumb to drug overdoses? I’d guess it’s statistically significant.

This isn’t to say this happens only among rich people. Drug abuse and mental health can afflict anyone.

But those aren't frenzy killings..thought out, tried to cover tracks