Siblings' book details dad's abuse of mother

Jennifer and Raymond Sheehan say their lives changed forever -- for the better -- the day their mother shot their retired police officer father to death.

Neither witnessed the shooting on Feb. 18, 2008. When they got the call, they expected to hear that their mother was dead. They figured her end was only a matter of time after years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of their father, Raymond Sr.

So when Raymond Jr. learned it was his dad who was dead, he felt an immense relief. "Like a weight lifted off my shoulders," he said.

But there was more stress to come. Their mother, Barbara, would be tried for murder and their family's dark, disturbing secrets would be cracked open in court.

Less than a year after Barbara Sheehan was acquitted for fatally shooting her husband 11 times at their Queens home, her children have published a book about the ordeal.

"In Bed With the Badge: The Barbara Sheehan Story" goes on sale Tuesday. It details her life and descent into abuse and despair, and includes notes and recollections from Raymond and Jennifer and from family friends who witnessed the abuse.

The two siblings said they focused the account on their mother -- and not their own experience -- because they hoped her story would serve as a cautionary tale for other abused women and help them see the early warning signs.

"Going through everything after my mom killed my father, living their experiences, we wanted to show other people the importance of getting out of a bad relationship before it's too late," Raymond Sheehan, 22, said in an interview with The Associated Press.

He took the stand in his mother's defense last fall during the trial, which was much more difficult than writing the book, he said. He was grilled on his childhood and admitted on the stand that he thought of suicide.

In their book, the siblings explore the question of why their mother would stay with an abusive man for more than 20 years.

"I think after this all happened and she realized how bad the psychological and physical abuse was that she was going through even then, she started thinking back and realizing 'Oh, this wasn't normal,' " said Jennifer Sheehan, 26.

Barbara Sheehan, 50, convicted on one weapons charge and sentenced to 51/2 years in prison, is out on bail while appealing her conviction.