December 21, 2016

7:43 PM

Last week, on Monday, December 12, Denton residents Jenny and David Williams woke up to the sound of neighbors beating on their door. Their truck was set on fire and the words “N----- Lovers” were spray-painted on their garage door. The story wasn’t reported until last Thursday, four days after the vandalism and arson incident occurred.

“Yesterday morning David told me that he started the fire and spray-painted the garage door,” Jenny told The Dentonite earlier today. “There’s a lot that goes into that - a lot.”

David was checked into a mental hospital in DFW yesterday afternoon where he will remain for the next 3-10 days. When he is released, he will be arrested for arson and possibly other charges.

In 2012, David was diagnosed with bipolar disorder with rapid cycling and borderline personality disorder and spent two weeks at Mayhill Hospital in Denton. In 2003 David spent time in a facility in Colorado. Both times after being released, David tried different medications to find one that fit. After 9 months of trial and error each time, he chose to not pursue medication anymore.

“Every attempt David had made, he found himself frustrated in,” Jenny said. “Meds that made him feel worse, meds that made him mentally feel better but the side effects were horrendous, or meds that didn’t have the horrible side effects but made his mental state or made him feel like his mental state was worse.”

“Once you’ve tried that long getting the wrong thing, do you believe that the right thing even exists?”

David is a spokesperson for NAMI, the National Alliance for Mental Illness. “I go to Middle Schools & High Schools to talk about racism and stigma. Trying to train people to not proceed in ignorance,” he said in an interview with The Dentonite last week.

David’s sister and one of their friends created a GoFundMe account last Wednesday, and they’ve received more than $5,000 as of today from 113 different donors. Ashley, David’s sister, has been contacting people to ask what they’d like to do with their donations - return the money or not. “All I can say is our community is amazing,” Jenny says.

“Everything I said in my blog post, everything I’ve ever said to you or anyone else is my experience of this event,” Jenny says. “I can’t wrap my brain around the fact that mental health played a role in this.”

Right now, Jenny is asking for understanding. She isn’t in control of the GoFundMe account, she doesn’t have access to that money. She will, however, continue to work her part-time job and support her 4 children.

“I woke him up. Who can start a fire 30 feet from where their wife and children are and then go to sleep?”

If you or someone you know is facing mental illness issues, you can contact the NAMI support hotline, for free, at 800-950-6264.

Header image design by Sara Button