I recently read the Charlotte Observer article about Kenny Chapman, the mentally troubled man who allegedly murdered his wife and two children then stayed, along with his surviving children, in the home with their bodies for two weeks before ending his own life.

The in-depth article told about Mr. Chapman’s challenges and his various attempts to get help from mental health professionals. While there are many things in the story of the Chapman family’s life and death that one could question, the one that I question most is whether mental health experts ever told police -- or Nateesha Chapman -- that her husband was a threat to her life and to the lives of her children.

At face value, there seems to be an avalanche of blame that can be heaped upon the heads of the mental health professionals who failed to recognize and treat Mr. Chapman, even though, it seems, he begged them for help. Those perceived failures will have to be answered by those experts, both in-house and, more than likely, in court.

I am not one to necessarily blame the caregivers for this tragedy. Psychology is not an exact science. Diseases of the mind have and will continue to baffle health experts.

I believe it is likely that doctors did the best they could in terms of assessing the stability of Mr. Chapman and in prescribing medications and follow-up care. I have to believe that doctors believed that the same man who was able to walk into the hospital and ask for help was also able to follow up on their advice to take prescribed medications and to seek mental health follow-up.

At first glance, I no more blame the doctors for this tragedy than I blame Mr. Chapman's family. One would think that family members should have noticed that Mr. Chapman was spiraling toward this end.

I can imagine that this family will always be haunted by questions of "Why didn't I see this?" and "What signs did I miss?"

As is often true in life, however, we often are unable to see the things that are closest to us. This family will forever grieve the loss of these family members but probably should not blame themselves for this loss.

The one thing, I believe, that might have prevented this tragedy is a law mandating that when a threat is made in the presence of a health care professional to harm or kill another person, that police and the person in danger must be immediately notified.

It is very likely that the Chapman family, including Nateesha, saw some things that were worrisome. It is also likely that the doctors saw signs of a very troubled man.

If the wife had been alerted that her husband had made repeated threats against her and her children, I believe she could have put that information together with her own observances and taken steps necessary to protect them all.

A puzzle is easiest to see when all the pieces are in place. This victim should have been given, by law, the one piece of information that might have saved her life.

This family's death need not be in vain. We need to get this law on the books. If my life is being threatened, I want to know it.

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D. Barbara McWhite grew up in York County, S.C., and lives in Orange Park, Fla., with her husband and cat.

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