10/19/2007 - Forensic psychiatrist discounts claims of mental disorder in Montgomery
A woman accused of killing an expectant mother and cutting the baby from her womb did not suffer from a condition that made her believe she was pregnant, a psychiatrist testified.
Testimony was expected to conclude Friday when defense lawyers continue their cross-examination of Park Dietz, a rebuttal witness for the prosecution. On Thursday, he pointed out inconsistencies in the accounts Lisa Montgomery gave about her supposed pregnancy.
"In my opinion, the defendant had no mental disorder that caused her to believe she was pregnant in 2004," said Dietz, who has worked on other high-profile cases, including those of child killers Andrea Yates and Susan Smith, serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski.
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9/30/2007 - Expert: Alleged Serial Shooter Duo Were 'Thrill-Seeking'
An expert on serial killers said Friday that murder suspects Samuel Dieteman and Dale Hausner were looking for thrills last summer as they carried out a shooting spree that killed two people and wounded many others in the Phoenix metropolitan area.
Dr. Park Dietz, a forensic psychiatrist from Newport Beach, Calif., noted that Dieteman said both men described their acts as "Random Recreational Violence."
"What I do think comes through loudly and clearly from their statements is a callousness about the victims and their suffering and the impact on others that these shootings had," Dietz said.
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9/29/2007 - Murder, kidnapping trial hinges on sanity
The critical issue at Lisa Montgomery's upcoming trial is not so much whether she killed Bobbie Jo Stinnett and kidnapped her unborn baby, but whether she was sane.
Defense lawyers have opted for an insanity defense at the trial, which opens today. They face a prosecutorial arsenal that includes DNA evidence, a confession and a kidnapping victim taken by law enforcement from Montgomery's arms.
To counter defense evidence of insanity, prosecutors plan to call Park Dietz, a forensic psychiatrist from California. Dietz has testified in the cases against Jeffrey Dahmer, John W. Hinckley Jr. and Andrea Yates. Prosecutors also have handled this charge before. Although kidnapping resulting in death may seem like a cumbersome federal statute, the charge has been brought twice in Kansas City area federal courts in recent years.
(Source: Kansas City Star)