Mother Convicted in Suicide of Nude Dancer, 17

A mother whose teen-age daughter committed suicide was found guilty Friday of child abuse by a jury that decided that she had caused her daughter to kill herself by forcing her to be a nude dancer.

Theresa Jackson, 40, was also found guilty of procuring a sexual performance by a child. She is believed to be the first parent charged with child abuse stemming from a child’s suicide.

Her lawyer, Kenneth Whitman, said he plans to appeal the landmark conviction for 17-year-old Tina Mancini’s suicide.

“I’m very pleased with the verdict,” said prosecutor Kathleen Kearney, an assistant state attorney. “It did give her (Tina) some measure of dignity.”

The jury of five women and one man, including four parents of teen-agers, deliberated about 12 1/2 hours over three days before announcing its verdict.

The case broke more ground when Broward County Circuit Judge Arthur Franza allowed into evidence a Harvard doctor’s “psychological autopsy” on Mancini.

Doctor’s Conclusion

Dr. Douglas Jacobs, who based his retrospective analysis of Mancini’s death on records provided by the prosecution, said the exploitative relationship between the girl and her mother was a significant contributing factor in the suicide.

Jackson showed no emotion when the verdict was read. She faces penalties ranging from community supervision to 25 years in prison. Franza scheduled sentencing for Dec. 3.

Kearney argued that Mancini committed suicide because the mother forced her to work as a nude dancer and then lived off her earnings, which some weeks totaled more than $1,000.

Three months after Mancini started work in bars featuring nude dancing, she killed herself with her mother’s .357-caliber magnum handgun. No suicide note was found near her body March 24, 1986, although Jackson testified that she later found a note from that day that said: “I love you Mom. Love, Tina.”