Are there factors that increase the homicide risk in this client?

Assessing for Level of Threat: Judy

Judy is a 43-year-old single woman who has been placed on 2 weeks’ administrative leave from her job as a research and development technician at a chemical company. Over the years, she has had many personality conflicts with other workers, but her expertise is valuable, and these conflicts have always been smoothed over and worked out. Recently, she “lost it” with her boss and flew into a rage when she was denied time off in compensation for working late the previous week; this incident was the basis for her administrative leave. Her family doctor has prescribed antidepressants for her and has referred her to you for counseling.

Judy expresses anger and a sense of hopelessness about her situation. She is distraught and has to drink wine every night just to go to sleep. Judy is convinced that she will be fired and that the boss is using these 2 weeks to build a case against her. She expresses to you how valuable she is to the company and how much knowledge she has, including her knowledge of tasteless but deadly poisons. She states, “Just one minute in the break room is all someone would need; just slip it in the coffee and they wouldn’t know what hit them.”