While the wife versus mother-in-law struggle is something of a stereotype, it appears all too real in Truro, Cornwell where Andrew Salmon was mourning the loss of his mother. The death of his mother was bad enough, Salmon insisted, without his wife’s mocking her death by constantly singing “Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead”. He notably did not respond as did Glinda, the Good Witch of the North: “You have no power here! Begone, before somebody drops a house on you, too!” Instead, he responded by locking her in a shed — resulting in his arrest for assault.
Andrew Salmon admitted that he snapped after listening to the mocking renditions of the Wizard of Oz song from his wife Beverley Salmon. When she returned home, she found her belongings in bags outside of the house and the house itself locked with the curtains drawn. Andrew reportedly told her that “It is my house now. You are not getting in.” He then locked her in the garden shed but Mrs. Salmon proved as nimble as Toto and jumped out of a small window. At that point, Andrew allegedly punched his wife, dragged her by her legs and pinned her on a bed.
He blamed the song and insisted “I was provoked but I am sorry for what I have done to my wife and regret everything I did. I was pushed towards it although I should not have done it.”
That is something short of an insanity defense I would think. It would make for an interesting plea given the period of grieving but the careful exclusion of the wife from the home and the long series of violent reactions leave little beyond a plea for mercy. He is left in the same position as another character from the movie:
Dorothy: How do you talk if you don’t have a brain?
Scarecrow: Well, some people without brains do an awful lot of talking don’t they?
The government named a hurricane after my mother in law. It wiped out the large areas of New Jersey. I wont say her name. But if you ask me again I’d tell you the same.
It’s prudent to say things, and hum songs, in your head.
This is truly a case of two people deserving each other.
Sounds like quite a feisty woman. Don’t tell me the man did not know how the wife felt while “the wicked witch was still alive”? He should just walk away and soon she will get over it. I guess I am not as smart as she. I had one just like her. Unfortunately she lived to her 90’s. Never thought about calling her the wicked witch. Would have made me feel a lit better. I hop he cooled off in the cooler.
Cute use of the song by the wife. I think both husband and wife need to go their separate ways.
Obviously I don’t really believe in locking the gals up in the shed but it reminded me of something.
One of my brothers has had a severe cognitive disorder since birth, with an IQ of about 75, thus have poor social skills and he loves to talk. One day at my families furniture store, he was almost creaming in the warehouse near the open door to the showroom bitching about something. The customers were hearing him, he was so loud and a couple of the salespersons asked me to take care of the situation as it was embarrassing them.
I couldn’t talk him in to calming down and the only thing I could think of is to throw in in the truck outside. I didn’t hurt him in any way but it did get his attention and he stopped. Good thing he is much smaller than I am. The only reason I threw him in the truck is because the garage door was up and the trucks pull down door was up and I was just trying to get him out of the building.
I don’t think I was wrong for having done what I did, but I surely did assault him. The question is that self defense in some manner, as management I had the authority to remove him from the building.
Come on that’s funny. It makes me contemplate getting a shed myself. lol Since when has locking up the little women in the shed been against the law? Come on, everyone has to admit that it is often difficult to get our sweet beloved better haves to shut their trap when they get on a role.
The wife must be a pistol.
I am not sure I can condemn the actions of either of them.
And if I only had a brain…..
That’s very heartless of the husband.
Second sentence, second paragraph has a major typo that makes the events uncertain.
Gallows humor morphs into a lack of empathy for a marriage partner’s loss.
Marriage … it’s not just for sane people any more.