THE MIND OF THE ACCUSED A Psychiatrist in the Courtroom

Hardback. The author has probed the intimate thoughts and fantasies of violent criminals throughout the nearly 50yrs (at the time) of his career. Now he draws on actual cases from his own experience - including those of some of the most infamous murderers of the 20th century - to show how we must unravel the complexities of the mind before we can fairly establish innocence or guilt and justify criminal penalties. This is a fascinating account of the workings of the criminal mind - often terrifying, puzzling, enthralling - in which we discover precisely why a person behaved as he did. We learn how a forensic psychiatrist pieces together all the conflicting factors in a criminal case, and how he separates actual motivation from mere acting. The author explains : How he unmasked the feigned insanity of "Son of Sam" (David Berkowitz) - the claim that barking dogs ordered him to kill - and finally led him to plead guilty. How his testimony put away George Metesky, the "Mad Bomber" who planted bombs in New York City for years. Why he helped obtain parole for Nathan Leopold, of the notorious Leopold-Loeb child-murder case. How he exposed the thief and hijacker who built a career in crime by hiding behind the insanity plea (proving that 40 psychiatrists can be wrong). Why we should ask, "Was Lee Harvey Oswald really shooting at JFK?" (One of the key experts called by the Warren Commission studying President Kennedy's assassination, the author proposes an intriguing interpretation of Oswald's true motivation.) In this absorbing behind-the-scenes account of his profession, Dr. Abrahamsen tells his personal story as well - of how a budding Freudian psychoanalyst with a growing private practice became involved in the strange and challenging field of forensic psychiatry. With Sources + Index. 224pp. 8vo. h/back. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. With small tape mk. to fpd, v. lightly browned edges. Vg+ in Vg+ dw.