Expert Witness in Court Role

Expert Witness in Court

Role of the Expert Witness in Case

As the forensic psychologist appearing as the expert witness for the defense of the defendant, Ms. Kelly Armstrong, it is my role to review the criminal case, interview Ms. Armstrong, perform a psychiatric evaluation of the defendant's competency based on the results of tests administered by me. My role is to help the defense attorney, the court, and the prosecution, too, understand the defendant's state of mind at the time the offense she is alleged to have committed occurred.

In the case of Ms. Armstrong, I utilized the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, and the Walker Analysis Phase One, Two, Three. Based on the interview I conducted with Ms. Armstrong, her prior five-year mental health record, and the data yield from the testing I conducted, I am prepared to testify on behalf of the defense as to Ms. Armstrong's state of mind at the time of the alleged offense for which she is charged.

The Interview of Ms. Kelly Armstrong

After interviewing the defendant, I was able to conclude that Ms. Armstrong was susceptible to the situation she was in, which was an abusive relationship in which she suffered prolonged physical and mental abuse at the hands of her significant other, Mr. Robert Payne. I can state with a reasonable degree of certainty that Ms. Armstrong acted in defense of herself when she responded to Mr. Payne's abuse by picking up a knife and stabbing Mr. Payne in the stomach with the knife.

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression is a tool administered by psychologists, including myself, to individuals in order to produce analytical data that will help the professional to make conclusions about the individual's psychiatric state of mind. The data, taken as a whole, is useful in developing a preliminary and working diagnosis of the patient. It can then be used to develop a treatment plan and course of intervention through counseling services and pharmacological regimens that can help to correct a chemical balance so that the patient can begin to cope with the work she must do to achieve a healthier perspective and to make changes in their own environments conducive to their well being.

In this case, based upon the patient's statements during the interview and the data yield from the Hamilton test, my initial diagnosis of the defendant's condition is that the patient suffers a mental disorder, depression Dysthmia, post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), battered woman syndrome evidence -- self-defense, provocation, and duress.

Ms. Armstrong, according to her input and the test results, rated a three on a zero to four rating in the area of uncertainty about the future, worry, insecurity, irritability, apprehension and dread. She expressed a high level of anxiety and worry about her own safety and physical well being. This stems from a long history of abuse, not just in the relationship that led to Mr. Payne's injury, but beginning early in her life. While the past abuse suffered at the hands of individuals from family members to boyfriends, it is Ms. Armstrong's relationship with Mr. Payne that has had the greatest impact on her inability to feel safe, and which is the basis of her fear for her physical well being. It is, of course, her past experience of abuse, which has in many ways become the norm for Ms. Armstrong much the same as non-violence is the norm for most of us, that causes her to be unable to make, and act on, choices for herself that allow her to remove herself from harms way, i.e., Mr. Payne.

Ms. Armstrong reported that her fears, particularly her fear for her physical well being, have interfered with most recently with her activities of daily living (ADLs). This is consistent with the diagnosis of battered woman syndrome.

What we have seen here is that Ms. Armstrong reached her psychological maximum in dealing with her fears for her psychical safety. She has tried to end the relationship with Mr. Payne, but has found herself unable to do that, even though she had a strong desire to do so. When she became unable to end the relationship, she was likewise not able to have time away from the abuse meted out against by Mr. Payne, and, therefore, could not rebuild her own psychological state of mind to achieve a sense of safety that would have resolved the culmination of her fears expressed as an act of self-defense in protecting herself from Mr. Payne. The pattern of physical abuse experienced by battered women can be interrupted when the battered woman separates herself from the source of the violence against her. This is not to say that Ms. Armstrong would not choose poorly for herself, and her well being, by returning at some point in time to live with Mr. Payne. It is to state that had she been able to interrupt the pattern and the violence being dealt her, that she would have been able to resolve the overload on her psychologically, through counseling and safe haven, to a point where she might have rationalized away the danger Mr. Payne posed to her; although that danger was, of course very real for her.

When she was unable to interrupt the pattern of abuse, her response to her fear and uncertainty about her own physical safety was to defend herself, which she had not previously done. The relationship ran the course of approximately one year. During that time, she reported, Mr. Payne worked and was away from their household. Mr. Payne worked casually, she reported, and the majority of the time they were together Mr. Payne made threats to physically abuse her, or actually physically abused her. Keep in mind, too, that when Ms. Armstrong gave information reflecting a score of three, that it was post traumatic experience where she reacted in defense of herself. Her response in this regard that her fear has occasionally interfered with her daily life is an expression of where she is psychologically post event. Prior to that event, it is not unreasonable to believe that Ms. Armstrong was at a level four of stress and fear for her physical well being, because she responded in defense of physical well being. However, the score must be reported as it was given, which is a three, and that the level of interference her fears have on her is such that it occasionally interferes with her daily life.

I noted that the patient seemed somewhat more nervous and tense than usual. This mean that I observed her behavior during the interview as showing signs of the tension and nervousness she was experiencing. This is observed through her physical movements, responses, and can be acts such as winding hair, frequently adjusting clothing, inability to maintain consistent one on one focus during our exchanges, pacing, and other such behavior and movements.

Ms. Armstrong stated that she felt some level of phobic anxiety, but felt she was able to fight it. This was in relation to her fears of crowds, animals, public places, of being alone, of traffic, strangers, and of the dark. These are some of the areas that would cause her anxiety. While many people share some degree of phobias in these same areas, the difference is that Ms. Armstrong has not had safe haven with which to retreat to, and her own environment became a trigger for these phobias. In her battered state, public places, crowds, and these other examples would have become sources of an exacerbated level of tension and anxiety, and this would have made it difficult for her to escape her abusive situation. Escape would, for her, have meant these other sources of phobic fear, and this too is consistent with the battered woman syndrome. Finding the space and time to abate these fears, anxiety, and tension is often what keeps women like Ms. Armstrong from escaping these relationships and receiving help from professional organizations, and individuals.

As a batterer, it is unlikely that Mr. Payne would have allowed Ms. Armstrong any out. Mr. Payne had a victim in Ms. Armstrong, and victims can be difficult for batterers to find. Once Mr. Payne realized that Ms. Armstrong was a victim, then he would have been very unwilling to allow her to escape, because he needs to batter a woman. This feeds his own psychological problems; it is what gives him a sense of success, power, because he has no other sources from which to achieve those feelings from in his life. He does not have career or work success, and he further impaired his own psychological state with drugs and alcohol.

It is interesting to note that in this case the batterer, Mr. Payne, remained home and only worked on a casual basis. However, at the moment when the incident occurred, he had been out of the house, and returned under the influence of at least alcohol. This goes back to what I mentioned earlier, that Ms. Armstrong was unable to retreat to the safety of her environment to rebuild her mental strength and defenses and to begin to feel safe. Her environment became fearful, because she would wait there for Mr. Payne to return, and when he did, as she had feared, he began violently physically abusing her. Her level of fear and anxiety would have been high at the time Mr. Payne arrived home, having been exacerbated by the waiting in the environment. Her fear for her safety in the future had come to the moment of the future, in that Mr. Payne arrived home.

The battered syndrome Ms. Armstrong experienced was in no small part exacerbated by her inability to sleep. She scored two on a scale of four for sleep disturbances, and, as do those people who are in the battlefield experience, her sleep was at a superficial level, which is a level not at ease, but rest, yet alert. Her body had no time to restore itself through deep and relaxed sleep, which left her mentally exhausted. This is consistent with the stress experienced by individuals with PTSD. Keep in mind, too, that Ms. Armstrong was battered daily, threatened daily, and that her environment afforded her no refuge from fear of the next battering.

Ms. Armstrong scored a two on a four scale level in concentration. In no small part due to her mental exhaustion, Ms. Armstrong found she was unable to concentrate on everyday matters, and she noted her memory was not good. She found it difficult to do the routine work in her life; housekeeping, laundry, cooking, and such things, and certainly employment would have been a problem, if not impossible.

I observed that Ms. Armstrong manifested recognizable symptoms and signs of depression; a sense of hopelessness, sadness, helplessness, and dependency, which would have contributed to her overall inability to resolve her situation and to escape Mr. Payne's abusing her. In this area, Ms. Armstrong scored a three on a scale of four. This demonstrates that she was indeed at her emotional weakest, and unable to make choices for herself wherein she might have looked to the long-term consequences of her actions. Her reaction came out of these signs of depression, and fear for her physical well being. Her action was a response to a precipitating factor -- the violence being dealt her by Mr. Payne; not a plan of action that she had formulated in her mind. In fact, her concentration and memory were impaired such that she could not have sufficiently thought through such a plan, and then carried it out, because her memory was impacted too. She lacked the mental capacity to have acted on a plan of action. All that she had that moment in time were responses to the precipitators that evoked her responses.

For instance, if I take a ball and toss the ball in your direction, your response is to try to catch the ball. Even if the ball is hard and you are not wearing a ball glove, you would reach up and respond by attempting to catch the ball -- without consideration of the pain that you might experience by catching the hard ball in your bare hand. It is a response, not a thought through plan of action, because the precipitator was unexpected, and you reacted in the moment. Ms. Armstrong's diminished mental capacity left her unable to reason, or to formulate a plan, but reacted to precipitator in the moment.

Ms. Armstrong experienced fatigue, and real functional disturbances of her senses. These sensory disturbances manifested with tinnitus, blurring of vision, hot and cold flashes, and prickling sensations. All of these are in no small part due to the lack of sleep and in overall physical and mental exhaustion. In her heightened state of anxiousness and fear, her nerve endings showed signs of stress, and this is the tingling and prickling sensations she experienced. People often describe this as raw nerves, fried nerves, because it is equated with the electrical impulses that the nerves receive from the brain. When physical exhaustion is the case, then the impulses are not being received as strongly as when a person is physically and mentally healthy.

Ms. Armstrong does not report tachycardia, palpitations, oppression, chest pain, throbbing in the blood vessels, or feelings of faintness. While most of us consider the absence of these signs good for Ms. Armstrong it was a dual edged sword. Her heightened state of anxiety would have prevented her from experiencing these senses, because a heightened state, though physically unsustainable, does not manifest these conditions. The individual's body is moving in a fast forward mental and physical condition, and it is when this ceases, that an individual is most likely to go from that heightened, high emotional and physical state of functioning, to a slowed, now, abnormal state, and then to begin to experience these other manifestations that would alert them as to the physical damage done to their bodies.

Throughout the interview, Ms. Armstrong remained moderately nervous. Her total score on her Hamilton test battery was 24 on a scale of 30, indicating that her level of anxiety was mild to moderate; although by the time she took the test she had, again, achieved a level of improved security as to her physical well being, although impacted by these current legal proceedings. She has had that respite from Mr. Payne that has allowed to rebuild her physical and mental resources, to be able to cope at a less agitated state. Because Ms. Armstrong is a battered woman, and suffers from PTSD, it is also realistic to conclude that she is in many ways at the time of the test minimizing her levels of tension, stress, and anxiety. Her own sense of helplessness and sadness would contribute to her sense of low self-esteem and self-worth, and she would rationalize that she is not worthy of the attention that might be given her if she expresses concern for herself. This is manifested by Ms. Armstrong's score of 3 on a scale of four for feelings of guilt; her present illness is a punishment, and she suffers delusions of guilt about her own role in her predicament of abuse.

Ms. Armstrong suffers suicidal ideations, without a plan to actually commit the act. She feels life is not worth living. This arises out of her inability to create a safe and better environment for herself. While she would not commit suicide at this time, the abuse she has suffered and the continuing violence being meted out against at the hands of Mr. Payne could bring death, and this would resolve her need to face life. This is certainly a contributing factor as to why Ms. Armstrong does not act in a proactive way to eradicate herself from the abuse syndrome she is in.

The areas of life from which Ms. Armstrong could ostensibly gain emotional and physical strength, have lost interest to her. She has no hobbies, or work that could contribute to gaining a sense of elevated self-esteem through accomplishment. She shares this with Mr. Payne, who does not have these outlets either, but they manifest their self-esteem in ways that are very much gender related; Mr. Payne gains strength and demonstrates strength and power by physically and mentally abusing Ms. Armstrong. Ms. Armstrong subordinates herself to the power of Mr. Payne, and this is her role, as the weaker partner in the relationship, and she is actually Mr. Payne's source of power and strength.

Domestic violence is not about love, and it is not about wrong doing. Domestic violence is a crime, but it is one that people generally assign levels of guilt by association to. Often economic circumstances, and a deep sense of commitment to the relationship keep women in these abusive relationship. Children are often a factor in these kinds of relationships. Once there is a bond created between a couple, through the child, it becomes increasingly difficult to break away from the relationship.

Domestic violence are a series violent acts and incidences from which the abuser gains a sense of power and strength that he (usually 'he') is not able to achieve from other areas of his life. The violent nature of the relationship suggests that Mr. Payne could have at some point in time killed Ms. Armstrong; however, it would be a loss to him in that he derives his power and strength through abusing her. Abusers may eventually kill their victims, and this happens often, but it would be over a long period of time, and, just as when Ms. Armstrong acted in response to the fear and anxiety she had suffered, further exacerbated by her depleted state of physical weakness and mental exhaustion, she reacted to Mr. Payne in a way that was inconsistent with the way in which she had dealt with it previously. In other words, her body, through her response to Mr. Payne, took over where her diminished capacity could not make the choice to defend her physical body.

Therefore, my recommendation to the court is that Ms. Armstrong not be held accountable for this action, because she did not make a choice at the time of the incident involving the stabbing of Mr. Payne. While Ms. Armstrong knew that Mr. Payne would return to the residence they shared on the date the incident occurred, she had no ability to formulate a plan to cause Mr. Payne harm. She was instead following the same pattern that she has followed most of her life; the victim awaiting the punisher. While Ms. Armstrong's action was a reaction to the precipitator, Mr. Payne, it can only be considered a defensive reaction. The fear for herself that Ms. Armstrong experienced, was, based on her past five years of medical records, very real. Mr. Payne's violence against Ms. Payne was escalating, and he had begun impacting an already mentally disturbed behavior with drugs, methamphetamines, which would make his potential for serious and permanent harm to Ms. Armstrong very real.

It is important to understand that as a woman, Ms. Armstrong would perceive herself as the maker of peace in her relationships, and she would, when she found time and space to revitalize her senses and thinking, believe that she could bring about behavioral changes in Mr. Payne if she changed herself. If she were a better woman, she would not be so likely as to arouse his anger and abuse. This is consistent with battered woman syndrome, and it is, as we can see here, a vicious circle that allows the abuse to continue until the power person in the relationship, exerts enough power and force as to terminate the relationship through permanent physical harm to Ms. Armstrong.