When Russell Weston Sr. offered a tearful apology to the nation for the murders his mentally ill son allegedly committed at the Capitol, the pain and guilt he expressed were familiar to the families of other schizophrenics. Like the Westons, those families know how unpredictable life can be when a loved one suffers from the most volatile and devastating mental illness known to human beings.

"We identify closely with this particular news item," says Jane Moser, mother of a 44-year-old paranoid schizophrenic and manic depressive who once tried to kill her. What happened to the Weston family is "our worst nightmare come true."

Known as Rusty (Weston) to his family, Weston didn't show violent traits, just odd behavior. He thought the CIA was spying on him via satellite dishes, and he was investigated in 1996 by the Secret Service for making paranoid comments about President Clinton. The Secret Service concluded he was a low-level threat. A few months later, a judge ordered him committed to a state mental hospital after he threatened someone in Montana, where he lived at the time.