Haban told a county social worker assigned to her domestic abuse case that Vang was pressuring her to leave inpatient mental health treatment and return home. She was afraid of losing custody of her kids -- which, according to a social worker, is what Vang told her would happen if she continued receiving care. On December 16, 2015, three days after being discharged from the hospital, Haban killed herself at age 28. “I believe Mr. Vang’s conduct directly contributed to the death of his partner,” County Attorney Mark Ostrem said in a statement announcing Friday’s charges. Vang was clearly aware of the precarious state of his partner’s emotions following her hospitalization, and he continued the relentless contacts until her death.” 
 
 Charging an abuser with murder for another person’s suicide is a rarity in Minnesota if not unprecedented, according to Ostrem and others. Experiencing domestic violence significantly increases a person's risk of suicide, according to research. "Women who make suicide attempts experience higher rates of domestic violence than women who do not, and women who experience domestic violence have higher rates of suicide attempts and ideation than women who have not been victimized by an intimate partner," said Carole Warshaw, director of the National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health. Liz Richards, executive director of the Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women, which was founded in 1978 and has been tracking homicides related to domestic abuse since 1989, noted that when it looked at data of Minnesota women who died by suicide over a three-year period﻿, it found that between 6 percent and 13 percent of cases included “a documented court record about domestic violence of some type,” Richards said. "It leaves a lot of power in the hands of the prosecutor to bring a criminal prosecution when there is an awful lot of speculation," he said. "There is finally going to be some justice for Jessica,” her mother, Rita Prinzing, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “While we know that it won’t bring her back, he will be held accountable.” 
 
 Bob Small, executive director of the Minnesota County Attorneys Association, said Ostrem “is being courageous” with this new approach.
– In a potentially unprecedented move for the state, a Minnesota man is being charged with murder for allegedly driving his partner to suicide. According to the Olmsted County Attorney, Long Vang and Jessica Haban were together for 10 years. During that time, Haban was subject to increasing levels of domestic violence. She was thrown into a wall by her hair and had a knife held to her throat, the Huffington Post reports. According to the Minnesota Star Tribune, Vang allegedly knocked Haban unconscious multiple times and poured vegetable oil on her because she "had bad in her." In May 2015, Vang allegedly punched Haban in the head, causing a traumatic brain injury, which led to depression. Despite a court order, Vang repeatedly called and texted Haban. She told a social worker she felt like Vang had killed her. Haban sought mental health treatment, but Vang threatened her, telling her she would lose custody of their two kids if she didn't stop getting medical care. Three days after leaving treatment in December 2015, Haban killed herself. She was 28. Vang was arrested this month and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The county attorney believes Haban killed herself to escape Vang. It's extremely rare to be charged with murder for someone else's suicide. In what is called a "depraved heart murder," prosecutors must prove Vang "did something that was very likely to kill" while displaying "complete disregard for human life," HuffPo explains. The county attorney believes they can do so. Haban's mother tells the Star Tribune the charges mean "there is finally going to be some justice for Jessica."