The ever-growing field of real crime certain stories entice you while others scare you up to the point of death and there are stories which break your heart. This shocking true crime story of child mutilation unfortunately falls in the third group.
A woman suffering from postpartum psychosis cut her baby’s legs in the name God. This horrific true crime story of how a tiny infant who was unable to defend herself suffered the consequences of her mother’s mental issues that were not addressed will shock you to the center.
The beginning
John and Dena Schlosser are a wealthy couple who relocated to Illinois to the luxurious area located in Fort Worth, Texas, in the year 2000. John was a software developer and Dena was a mom at home for their twin daughters Breana and Kelsie.
After a short time, John, who was sole breadwinner in the family, quit his job and began doing freelance consulting. Unfortunately, the latest job did not suffice to support their lifestyle and, soon after, they lost their house to foreclosure.
Water of Life
Prior to losing their home, John & Dena Schlosser had been introduced to their way to the Water of Life Church through their friends. They may have liked the Church and its doctrines intriguing because, shortly after they were introduced they were said to have drove the 120 miles round trip several times per week to attend church.
With their devotion towards their devotion to Water of Life, the family of four moved into an apartment in the vicinity of the church following the loss of their home. Following their relocation, the family began to notice her growing attraction to her newfound love for the Water of Life Church and its pastor, Doyle Davidson.
The impact of Davidson’s influence
Doyle Davidson, the pastor at the Water of Life Church, was a vet and often integrated his teachings with the lessons he learned from treating animals. He believed that he was a prophet assigned by God to Plano, TX, where the Water of Life Church was in order to share the word of God.
Davidson said he believed that the Jezebel spirit was affecting Plano. Plano and Jezebel’s spirit Biblical goddess of the pagan world worked through women in the town to subjugate men.
Through his sermons, Davidson taught that medicine is witchcraft, and that everything can be improved through prayer. John & Dena Schlosser fervently attended his sermons. The mother of Dena’s was an RN, brought cough medicine to Dena’s daughter. But, Dena threw away the bottle and explained to her mother that they used prayers to treat illnesses, not medication.
Margaret’s arrival
The spring of 2003 saw Dena Schlosser became pregnant again. In light of the couple’s deeply influenced opinions regarding medical science, she gave the birth of her third daughter Margaret at home with the assistance of an midwife.
Schlosser later stated that she gave twinsas well as a boy and a girl. However, the boy was dead at the birth and was returned to God. Before, she experienced postpartum depression that was mild following the birth of her two daughters in the first place. From the look of it, she was experiencing a recurrence of mental affliction, however an absence of treatment from a medical professional just exacerbated the issue.
The day following the having given the birth of Margaret, Dena tried to commit suicide with a knife. John discovered that she was bleeding from the toilet, however “didn’t think to” take her to the hospital. The injured areas were covered with bandages and prayed for them to make them heal.
Dena’s deteriorating condition
A few days following her attempt to commit suicide, Dena Schlosser burst out of her apartment and went off for the streets while Kelsie is watching The Little Mermaid on television. Dana thought that Kelsie’s characters were on the television were laughing and talking to her.
Kelsie who is now five years old, attempted at chasing her mom, but could not keep up with her speed. The police eventually located her, but as they came to her, Dena started screaming. The doctor diagnosed her with postpartum psychosis , and was admitted to a mental hospital.
Dena Schlosser was planning to remain inside her mental health center for a while, however John said Dena would feel more at ease in her home. CPS banned Dena from having any access to her kids for a period of two months and then kept an eye on her throughout the next few months. In the end, her prescribed medication worked and Dena was removed from the radar of the CPS.
But, when her improvement in her condition, Schlosser took off her medication as she believed that medicine was as a sin. She began to experience delusional episodes once more.
Aftermath
Dena’s mental condition began deteriorating. She was spotted making animal noises through her groaning and hissing. It was discovered that the Water of Life’s beliefs were also creating an negative effect on the health of Dena. Dena began acting odd and avoiding relatives who did not like her style of living or Davidson’s beliefs.
Her love for Davidson was unstoppable. Her eyes were convinced that he did absolutely nothing wrong. A few days ago, as she was getting her children dressed for the church service, Dena dressed Margaret in white and stated that she desired Davidson to be the bride. Even though John was able to convince his wife that he should wear a new outfit for the baby but he didn’t inform CPS regarding Dena’s degrading mental condition.
After the service, Dena said she wanted to “give her baby to God.” John continued to brush off the idea and the two fell asleep. The next day, Dena was adamant that God would have her baby. As gospel music filled the house, Dena went to the kitchen to get the largest knife she could locate. With a blade of nine inches she cut off her baby’s arms which killed her during the process.
The moment the cops arrived at the scene they were shocked by the scene. Dena Schlosser was serenely sitting with bloody hands and was singing Christian Hymns. After her arrest she was heard repeatedly shouting, “Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Lord.” Court ruled Dena not guilty of a crime of insanity. She was sent in North Texas State Hospital. North Texas State Hospital and was later discharged to outpatient status.
Then, the poor innocent Margaret was a victim of John and Dena’s Schlosser lack of respect for the proper clinical treatment and blind loyalty to Doyle Davidson.
