Dr. Phil introduces Dr. Denise Boots, a criminologist from the University of Texas at Dallas, and children’s rights attorney Paul Mones, who specializes in defending children accused of killing their parents.

“Nancy, let me ask you first, as a former prosecutor, should this child be prosecuted?” Dr. Phil asks.

“Well, that’s a complicated question. I think the child should be prosecuted only in the sense of being handled in the juvenile court, so over the years, the justice system can make sure that he is in treatment. I do not believe that an 8-year-old boy should go to jail,” she says.

“But you do think that if he was prosecuted, he would have a better chance of being monitored and getting help than if he was just left out on the street?” Dr. Phil asks.

“Absolutely, there’s no doubt in my mind. And not to speak ill of the dead, Dr. Phil, but who gives an 8-year-old boy a 22-caliber weapon and access to ammo? That’s my big question today,” she says.

“Yeah, I’m really curious about that as well.” Dr. Phil turns to Denise. “What causes an 8-year-old to do this? I mean, as Nancy says, obviously there has to be a gun and ammo available, but what kind of kids aggress in this way?”

“Well, this is an exceptional offender,” Denise says. “He’s exceptionally young, which is extremely rare on its face. We don’t normally see youngsters this age committing these types of acts. And when we look at young offenders that commit parricide, typically risk factors that emerge are things like the availability of guns in the house. Very frequently we see severe abuse going on in the family, a child who has tried to get help but has failed to receive help from others, or they have entertained thoughts of suicide, or they have other types of mental health problems or depression.”