suicidal thoughts, and was prey to a wide range of irrational, powerful fears. She was under a licensed psychologist's care, but the psychologist found her so troubled and ill that the sessions became "emotionally draining." Cabot became increasingly unable to care for herself; the interior of her home was littered with years of trash, and spoiled food lay everywhere. In late 1986, Cabot's mental health deteriorated significantly. Despite the squalor of the home's interior, Cabot still maintained an "adequate" income despite having retired from acting, largely due to real estate investments and her fascination with vintage cars, which she regularly acquired, restored, and resold. Death On December 10, 1986, Cabot's 22-year-old son, Timothy Scott Roman, beat her to death in her home in the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles, with a weightlifting bar. He was charged with second-degree murder. At trial, Roman testified that his mother had awakened him while screaming, not recognizing him, and calling for her mother, Elizabeth. When he attempted to call emergency services, she attacked him with a barbell bar and a scalpel. Roman seized the bar from her and beat her repeatedly on the head. He then hid the bar and scalpel, and told police that a man in a ninja mask had killed his mother (believing no one would believe his story about her mental illness). Roman's defense attorneys claimed their client's aggressive reaction to his mother's attack was due to the drugs he took to counteract his dwarfism and pituitary gland problems as part of treatments for his Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. At the close of the trial, prosecutors changed the charge to involuntary manslaughter, as no evidence had been presented at trial to support premeditation (which was required for a murder conviction). Superior Court Judge Darlene E. Schempp deliberated 10 minutes, and then convicted Roman of involuntary manslaughter. Roman, who had already spent years in jail, was sentenced to three years' probation on November 28, 1989. Roman died of complications from CJD on January 22, 2003, aged 38. Filmography Film Television Stage credits References Sources External links Susan Cabot —from the series Mysteries & Scandals, Season 3 Episode 23 (YouTube video) Image of Susan Cabot, Sal Mineo and Christine Carere at the motion picture premiere of "Diary of Anne Frank" in Los Angeles, California, 1959. Los Angeles Times Photographic Archive (Collection 1429). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California,