Gypsy Rose Blancharde Says Her 10-Year Prison Sentence for Killing Her Mom Is Harsh

She’s speaking out — and sharing her truth. There are few true crime cases that have captivated the nation quite like Gypsy Rose Blancharde’s, which was later retold in an HBO documentary, Mommy Dead and Dearest. Gypsy Rose’s mother, Dee Dee, had an extreme case of Munchausen by proxy, a rare psychological disorder in which a guardian exaggerates, makes up, or induces illnesses on a child in their care for attention — and for Gypsy, it meant pretending that she had muscular dystrophy, leukemia, among countless other ailments.

Gypsy found one way to escape the abuse — to kill her mother with the help of her boyfriend, whom she met online. After being found guilty of second-degree murder of her mother, she was sentenced to 10 years behind bars — a sentence, she tells Dr. Phil in a new interview airing later this month, she believes to be “harsh” given what she endured at the hands of her mother.

When the television doctor asks Gypsy if she should be in prison, she doesn’t hold back in her answer. “To be honest, I have complicated feelings about that,” she says. “I believe firmly that, no matter what, murder is not okay. But at the same time, I don’t believe I deserve as many years as I got.” After Dr. Phil asks what a more appropriate punishment would be, she explains, “I’m not really certain on that. I do believe that I do deserve to spend some time in prison for that crime. But I also understand why it happened, and I don’t believe that I'm in the right place to get the help that I need.”

Since it was first revealed that Gypsy killed her mom to escape the systematic abuse she endured at Dee Dee’s hands, Gypsy has maintained that she never wanted her mother dead — she just didn’tknow any other way to escape her reality. In her interview with Dr. Phil, she insists this is still the case. She explains, “I’m glad that I’m out of that situation, but I’m not happy she’s dead.”

Gypsy's interview with Dr. Phil will air on Nov. 21 and 22 — check your local listings for details.