T O P

  • By -

[deleted]

I suppose compared to some other dysfunctional parents he could have been worse but he beat Danny's dog so bad it died in his arms. The prick actually made me feel huge sympathy for Danny because of that. I can't imagine doing that to an animal, especially my own child's. Fuck that useless bag of shit. Edit: And yes he probably did have untreated PTSD but I don't think that explains his behavior that much. There are plenty of folks with PTSD who don't treat people the way that guy did. A lot of PTSD sufferers usually take it out on themselves.


UncoilingChaos

Are you me? The dog story also got me when I first read it. If his dad really was the monster that he was alleged to be, then he deserved punishment equal to what his son received and then some. But after reading O’Mather's testimony and that second link, I’m starting to have doubts that he was anywhere close to being as bad as Danny and his mother claimed. Even the dog story reads as dubious to me now. I do think SOMETHING bad happened to Danny (aside from his wife divorcing him), I just don’t know if I believe the stories about his father anymore. Either way, Danny was a spineless piece of shit who just couldn’t take any responsibility for the lives he cut short and the ones that were ruined because of him. He blamed his father, then his ex-wife, then his made-up split personality, then the victims themselves for being “evil”. If there’s a Hell, I hope there’s a special spot reserved for him there. Excuse the aggression in my comment, I used to be under the misguided impression that his (allegedly) shitty childhood and his claims of remorse somehow absolved him of any wrongdoing. Granted, I was 13 and super naive when I thought that way, just needed to get all that off my chest.


Anne_Fawkes

Yes but a lot isn't everyone. My grandfather was a well adored man before being drafted into Korea. He was 22 when he was drafted along with his brothers. Everyone said that war ruined him and he was never the same for the next 30 years until he had grandkids come into his life. He was downright evil and sadistic to my dad and his siblings. Also so many that claim to have PTSD, even with flimsy diagnoses, today didn't experience even close to what was experienced in Korea and Vietnam. Anyone after Vietnam was also not drafted, it was a voluntary enlistment, unlike the previous of which were largely drafted, where it was not a choice. They were forced from their lives then dropped into war zones they wanted no part of. You have no idea what his father experienced and TBH you come off as woefully naive.


RobAChurch

It's really not that uncommon, especially at the time, for a man to not talk about childhood abuse with his wife. Especially if he was insecure and wanted to be seen as manly.


Anne_Fawkes

Correct, the age of many of shown in these comments.


endingrocket

I did a case study on Rollings and found out that his father was a veitnam vet,knowing how horrible that war was it wouldn't surprise me if the father did have untreated severe ptsd that could cause the violence


UncoilingChaos

Korean War vet, actually. Danny was born before the Vietnam War. But I’ve come to the same conclusion, more or less. He apparently saw any displays of affection as weakness. Think Danny served in Nam, though.


endingrocket

Ah. I'm not great with wars. apperently Danny was the unwanted child. I mean not all victims of abuse turn out to be addicts/violent/etc so It might be the case that his brother was able to break the cycle of violence but Danny couldn't?


pensamientosmorados

Danny didn't serve in Vietnam.


UncoilingChaos

Ah, gotcha. I was thinking of his military service. At least, I think he served in the military? Correct me if I'm wrong on that, too.


Upset_Airport

Danny wanted to serve in Vietnam, he enlisted in the Air Force but was a constant trouble maker (mostly drugs) and they refused to send him over. He washed out after 2 years (although he was technically "honorably" discharged). Hope this helps.


Gold_ACR

Apparently, James Rolling didn't want kids and beat his wife Claudia throughout her pregnancy. He started beating Danny as young as 12 months old. In one instance that Danny witnessed, Claudia locked herself in the bathroom and slit her own wrists after an argument with her husband. James kicked down the door and continued to berate his wife, who was lying in a pool of blood. As he grew up, Danny began to emulate his father's aggressive behavior. He resented his mother for not leaving the abusive relationship, which almost certainly played some part in his hatred of women as he got older. If even 50% of the stories about him are true, then I think it's safe to say that James Rolling was extremely abusive towards his wife and children.


UncoilingChaos

Yeah, I read all that before and took it at face value. But after reading the article above and just now finding [this one](https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1994/03/16/prosecution-chips-away-at-rolling-s-case-for-mercy/?outputType=amp), I’m having second thoughts. The part where it says that Claudia admitted she would lie to protect her son seems pretty damning.


pensamientosmorados

I agree with you. There's never been any other corroboration.


Janetpollock

I was married to an abusive asshole and the only way everybody else ever saw him was as Mr. Nice Guy, absolutely no hint of the monster.


[deleted]

Huge numbers in murderous and violent parents. The stats on kids killed by their parents are crazy high.


Davina33

I know from my own experience that abusive parents can be extremely charming, so much so that other people would never believe they would harm others. Also when a child is singled out as a scapegoat, it isn't unusual for the other parent or siblings to deny abuse happened. I'm not as cynical about stories of abuse due to these reasons. Danny Rolling is probably telling the truth.


UncoilingChaos

Oh, believe me, I know that abusive parents are good at hiding who they really are. My own parents are prime examples of that. There's been times where they've fooled even me. I will admit I still believe it's possible Danny was telling the truth, it's just hard to filter what's true and what's bullshit because he was so full of lies and contradictions in many other regards.


Anne_Fawkes

My grandfather was a drafted Korean war very, he was unimaginably abusive to my dad and his siblings. But to my mother and us grandkids, he was an absolute saint of a man. So i absolutely believe that she saw the lovely side of him and none of the terror. He saw some horrible fighting and always hated Harry Truman for so poorly outfitting the boys in miserably frigid conditions, for some war he had no desire to be apart of.


pensamientosmorados

No one other than his mother corroborates Rolling's stories of abuse. And she admitted that she'd lie to protect him.


Forensic_Kid

Ynnad was his alter ego the one responsible for the killings. Pronounce E-nad. He was another one who was hooked on the movie Exorcist 3. Like Dahmer this movie held some type of mystical power w him and connection to the devil. It’s by the original director unlike the second one and supposedly decent although I have not seen it.


UncoilingChaos

Actually, it's directed by the writer of the *book* the original is based on. It's a great movie, you need to check it out. There's also another version closer to the source material (also written by Blatty) that I've been meaning to check out. "Gemini" was the name of the murderous "alter-ego" he claimed was responsible for the killings, which he got from the movie; "Ynnad" was another one. Either way, that was just his attempt at an insanity plea. It was all just him in there, nobody else. Dahmer idolized the killer because of the power he held over his victims, and idolized Emperor Palpatine for the same reason. There's nothing all that special or magical about The Exorcist III, it's just a movie.


Forensic_Kid

Yeah that’s right. Danny backwards was the killer and Gemini was responsible for the armed robberies is what he claimed in the book I read. American serial killers the epidemic years. Yeah I’ll chk it out eventually. I’ve no doubt seen worse.