I don't know why, but this hurts my heart. Ive followed this story closely for years. Lionel seemed to carry the guilt and shame and staggering remorse of his sons actions for the rest of his life and also grieving his son whom he never stopped supporting or loving. I hope he can now truly rest in peace...he certainly deserves to.
RIP Lionel. I always felt sorry for him. You could always tell that he felt real sorry about what his son did. And then to have a child that you raise and love do thing's like that, you can't just stop loving your child who you raised and loved even though you are sad and disgusted by the thing's that your child did. Just a very sad situation.
Thank you for posting this update. What a terrible ordeal for a parent to go through. He tried to get Jeffrey help for his drinking habits, but did not realize that wasn’t the worst of Jeff’s problems. I would love to hear feedback from anyone who has read his book.
In the book, the only thing that frustrated me was the way Lionel throws his wife under the bus by blaming her "sickness". His book is written in a way that by the time the readers are done reading it, they will feel as if the mother didn't do her job...Other than that, it's a nice book and it sure is a goldmine for Dahmer enthusiasts.
I feel that Lionel knew what his son was like. He encouraged his obsession with dead animals, didnt he? His shy demenor and his looks were similar. If his wife took prescription drugs while pregnant, why didn't he stop her? Jeff didn't blame his parents, nor societies evils for his crimes. Their toxic fighting, and leaving him alone at 18, led him to act out without hesitation. ( my friend told me that he did some motorcross with his first victim). I feel more sorry for Dahmer's mother because her husband shifted the blame onto her. The strange and toxic mix of genetics, and environment were left unchecked until it was too late. I went to college not far from his home in the 70s and early 80s. I wasn't aware of him nor of Bundy. I find myself very lucky because I easily could've been a victim of a SK How I wish that mental illness weren't such a stigma today. Many people need help and some need exorcised
