Mother Of Slain Daughter: Mental Illness May Have Contributed To Death
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (CBS4) - The mother of a murder victim found near Fort Collins on Friday said her daughter's mental illness might have played a role in her death.
The body of 28-year-old Andrea Bartmess was discovered near County Road 74 in a rural area northwest of Fort Collins. The Larimer County Sheriff's Office said she was likely killed six weeks ago but wouldn't disclose how she died other than that it was a homicide.
Wilma Cotten said Bartmess suffered from mental illness, including bipolar disorder, and she self-medicated with cocaine and methamphetamines.
"That was part of the bipolar," Cotten said. "I do what I want, when I want."
She said her daughter had a magnetic personality and made fast friends. That was perhaps another downfall, Cotten said.
"She always wanted everybody to like her, and she didn't know how to set boundaries with people and was a poor judge of character," she said.
Cotten said her intuition told her something had happened to Bartmess.
"I just got this image in my mind of her," she said. "I could see her as if she was standing in front of me, and I got a real heavy feeling in my heart. My heart just stopped, and I knew then that something was wrong."
Cotten said she hopes her daughter's death raises awareness about mental health care in Colorado.
The sheriff's office says there is a Crimes Stoppers reward for information in the case.
