True-crime fans were abuzz at the start of 2024. Why? Just a few days earlier, Gypsy-Rose Blanchard had been released from prison. Blanchard made national news in 2015 when, at 23, she and her then-boyfriend teamed up to kill her mother, who had abused the girl for years. Blanchard’s mother claimed her daughter had a number of medical conditions and subjected her to unnecessary surgeries and treatments. It wasn’t until Blanchard killed her mother that people realized she was not actually ill. Blanchard served seven years in prison after being convicted of second-degree murder. Since her release, she’s starred in her own reality show, appeared on numerous podcasts and talk shows, and become a social media celebrity. Her life is covered by news outlets with breathless fervor.
There is an interest in this story (and in Blanchard herself) given the unique nature of her crime and the circumstances surrounding it, according to criminology experts. “It gets a lot of attention because (Munchausen syndrome by proxy) is a rare thing,” said Carlos Cuevas, a professor of criminology and criminal justice at Northeastern University. “A lot of people don’t know about it and they’re struck by the dynamics of that particular problem.”
