 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
State v. Flake8/5/2003
ould have been "extraordinarily dangerous, at that time, if you were a man" to have touched the defendant. The record also reflects that the defendant said the victims made him uncomfortable because they were "huggy, touchy, feely kind of people," and that he suspected they were homosexual. Furthermore, the defendant expressed hostility and hatred toward Mike Fultz because he sent the defendant to a house that was guarded by three or four dogs, he sank boats in the Gulf of Mexico to collect insurance proceeds, and he refused to pay the defendant well. While the defense proof suggested the defendant committed these crimes because he believed the victims were terrorists and he an FBI agent doing a service to society, the prosecution developed alternative explanations through cross-examination. Lending further credence to the prosecution's theory was testimony from Dr. Goldin that the defendant reported having homicidal thoughts towards individuals who frustrated him and testimony from Mr. Flake that the defendant had physically assaulted his mother and father in the past.
Also, like Flake I, defense proof that the defendant suffered from a severe mental illness was countered by testimony elicited on cross-examination suggesting that it was also plausible that the defendant was malingering. As in Flake I, all the mental health experts offering an opinion testified that the defendant suffers from schizophrenia. The proof is undisputed, however, that, throughout ten years of prior mental health treatment, the defendant had not been diagnosed as schizophrenic and had never complained of auditory hallucinations. Significantly, the defendant's report of auditory hallucinations following his arrest was not spontaneous but was in response to a question from his mother. The defendant thereafter gave inconsistent answers as to when the voices began, and according to Dr. Craddock, he had no "good" explanation for why he had failed to previously report hearing voices, stating on one occasion that he had not previously reported the voices because the mental health experts did not ask him and stating on another occasion that he did not report the voices because he thought "everyone heard the voices." Results of two psychological tests indicated that the defendant was malingering mental illness, and even though the expert witnesses discounted these results, Dr. Craddock refused to "rule out the possibility . . . that [the defendant] might be malingering." Furthermore, the mental health coordinator at the Shelby County Jail, who saw the defendant on a regular basis after his arrest, believed the defendant was malingering. The proof also showed that, before his arrest, the defendant had been enrolled in and completed criminal justice courses at both UT-Martin and the University of Memphis. During his intake interview at MTMHI, the defendant was familiar enough with the criminal justice system to advise Dr. Craddock that he intended to plead not guilty by reason of insanity. Furthermore, according to psychological records of the defendant's mental health treatment prior to his arrest, he had a history of polysubstance abuse and had lied to his parents about the extent to which he abused drugs and alcohol. In fact, Mr. Flake testified that the defendant's emotional problems began at age twelve, also the age at which the defendant began drinking alcohol. Mr. Flake acknowledged the defendant's treating physician at the time of these shootings, Dr. Johnson, believed he was an alcoholic and a drug addict. Although the experts testified that the defendant's history of substance abuse had no impact on their evaluations since he had been incarcerated and had no access to drugs, Dr. Linder admitted that the defendant tested positive for ampheta
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Tennessee DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|