The Aporia · Father of three slain children takes psychologist to court over withheld records

Father of three slain children takes psychologist to court over withheld records

Read the original at The Independent ↗

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Farrell, P. (2026, August 24). Father of three slain children takes psychologist to court over withheld records. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/erik-denton-liliana-carrillo-psychologist-b3038105.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Erik Denton, the father of three young children killed by their mother Liliana Carrillo in 2021, is taking psychologist Dianna Lynn Barnes to court over withheld records from her evaluation of Carrillo's mental health. The records, which could be central to Denton's lawsuit against Los Angeles authorities, have been resisted by Barnes who claims they are privileged or protected from disclosure. According to the filing, Barnes concluded that Carrillo suffered from bipolar disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, which may have contributed to her actions. A hearing is scheduled for September 14 in Pasadena Superior Court to determine whether Barnes must comply with a subpoena seeking the records.

Written by AI on 2026-08-24, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Erik Denton, the father of three young children who were killed by their mother Liliana Carrillo in 2021, is suing Los Angeles County and others over the deaths. He alleges that Los Angeles police failed to take warning signs about Carrillo's deteriorating mental health seriously and did not adequately share information with county social workers. Denton's lawsuit, which was filed in April 2022, claims that his children were murdered by their mother while she was suffering from severe mental health issues. As part of the lawsuit, Denton is seeking records related to a psychological evaluation of Carrillo conducted by Dianna Lynn Barnes. However, Barnes has resisted releasing these records, citing privilege or protection. A court hearing on this matter is scheduled for September 14, where Judge Jared Moses will consider whether to order Barnes to comply with the subpoena and release the records.

Written for “Parent's Custody Rights Dispute” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

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Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

29%

4 of 14 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

Leans left

of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate

Publisher signals

59/100

The Independent's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Crime & Law

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-08-24 · how these are computed

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Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Independent · 3494 article(s) · 8 correction(s) detected

Running correction rate · 8 correction(s)

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Who wrote this

Paul Farrell

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All 40 articles by Paul Farrell →

Topics

Denton Los Angeles Los Angeles County Pasadena Superior Court Westlake Village

Subjects

Denton GPE · 8× Carrillo PERSON · 7× Barnes PERSON · 5× Liliana Carrillo PERSON · 2× Los Angeles GPE · 2× Dianna Lynn Barnes PERSON · 1× Erik Denton PERSON · 1× Jared Moses PERSON · 1× Los Angeles County GPE · 1× Pasadena Superior Court ORG · 1×

Narrative

Erik Denton, whose three children were killed by their mother, Liliana Carrillo, in 2021, alleges in his civil lawsuit that Los Angeles police failed to take warning signs about Carrillo’s deteriorating mental health seriously and did not adequately share information with county social workers.

framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-24

🔮 The father of three young children killed by their mother is asking a judge to force a psychologist who evaluated her to turn over records that he says could be central to his lawsuit against Los Angeles authorities.

2026-08-24 · The Independent

Father of three slain children takes psychologist to court over withheld records · mixed framing

Claims (14 extracted, 4 hedged)

The father of three young children killed by their mother is asking a judge to force a psychologist who evaluated her to turn over records that he says could be central to his lawsuit against Los Angeles authorities. uncertain

he → kill → authorities

police → kill → workers

Denton, who filed the lawsuit in April 2022, is suing Los Angeles County and others over the deaths. asserted

who → file → deaths

“This case arises from the death of plaintiff's three children who were murdered by their mother, Liliana Carrillo, while she was suffering from severe mental health issues,” Denton’s attorneys wrote in court papers. asserted

attorneys → arise → papers

Ahead of a Sept. 14 hearing, Denton’s lawyers asked Pasadena Superior Court Judge Jared Moses to order psychologist Dianna Lynn Barnes to comply with a subpoena seeking records related to her evaluation of Carrillo. asserted

lawyers → ask → Carrillo

Barnes has resisted the request, maintaining that the records are privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure, according to Denton’s attorneys. uncertain

records → resist → attorneys

Carrillo’s mental health was evaluated by several professionals as part of the criminal case against her, including Barnes and psychiatrist Dr. David S. Rad. asserted

health → evaluate → Barnes

According to Denton’s court filings, Rad cited Barnes’ findings in his own report. uncertain

Rad → accord → report

Barnes concluded that Carrillo suffered from bipolar disorder with peripartum onset and post-traumatic stress disorder and that her bipolar disorder left her unable to understand that her actions were morally wrong, Denton’s attorneys said. asserted

attorneys → conclude → her

A process server delivered notice of Denton’s motion to Barnes’ Westlake Village office on Aug. 13, according to the filings. uncertain

server → deliver → filings

Carrillo was 33 when her children — 6-month-old Sierra, 3-year-old Joanna and 2-year-old Terry — were killed on April 10, 2021. asserted

children → kill → April

In October 2024, Carrillo was found not guilty by reason of insanity in their killings. asserted

Carrillo → find → killings

She was subsequently committed to a state mental health facility, where she remains subject to continuing judicial oversight. asserted

she → commit → oversight

Denton’s lawsuit now puts Carrillo’s mental health history at the center of a separate legal fight over whether authorities failed to respond adequately to warning signs before the children’s deaths. asserted

authorities → put → deaths