Psychiatrists stand by findings on Breivik sanity

REUTERS

Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik (left) listens while while psychiatrists Terje Toerrissen and Agnar Aspaas testify in court on Monday, June 18, 2012.

Oslo - Two court-appointed psychiatrists said on Tuesday they had little evidence contradicting their conclusion that Norwegian self-confessed mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik was sane and accountable for his actions.

Psychiatrists Agnar Aspaas and Terje Torrissen were questioned by the judges, prosecution and Breivik's defence at the Oslo District Court over their findings that Breivik was not psychotic.

Breivik's mental health is central to the trial, due to run until Friday, as it will determine his sentence if he is found guilty.

The self-confessed far-right murderer, 33, has confessed to killing 77 people in twin bombing and shooting attacks in July, but has pleaded not guilty.

“We found no psychotic symptoms while Breivik was under the court-ordered observation,” Torrissen told the court.

The court appointed Aspaas and Torrissen this year after a first psychiatric assessment in November concluded Breivik was psychotic and suffering from paranoid schizophrenia. The first team testified last week, and remained convinced he is insane.

Aspaas and Torrissen defended their decision not to interview Breivik's mother, who has declined to testify at the trial. They opted to rely on interviews with her conducted by police and others.

Aspaas and Torrissen conducted 37 hours of interviews with Breivik, mainly one-on-one, in addition to drawing on reports from the staff that observed him round the clock for three weeks while he was in custody. This did not reveal psychotic symptoms, they said.

Videotaped police interviews with Breivik were another source.

“He answered coherently. We studied his demeanour and his responses,” Torrissen said of the interviews.

Both Aspaas and Torrissen said Breivik was able to adjust himself to a degree, but not when he discussed his “political views”.

Torrissen and Aspaas said they believed Breivik to be narcissistic and suffering from dissocial personality disorder.

In comments to the court, Breivik said the case “did not centre on psychiatry, but on the future of Norway and Europe”.

The trial opened on April 16 and has included testimony of how Breivik on July 22 set off a car bomb in the government district which killed eight people, before a shooting rampage at a political youth camp where 69 people died.

Survivors of both attacks have also taken the stand. - Sapa-dpa