Kazynski-Johnson - Report-09 11 98
Kazynski-Johnson - Report-09 11 98
ORDER
The attached redacted copy of the psychiatric competency report of Doctor Sally C.
Johnson is unsealed.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
FORENSIC EVALUATION
access all pertinent medical and collateral information, including psychiatric and
medical records, and psychological testing. The examination was ordered to
commence on 01/12/98. On 01/12/98, Judge Burrell issued a supplemental Order for
Dr. Sally Johnson to travel to Sacramento to conduct the examination of the
defendant at the Sacramento County Jail. The Order outlined that Dr. Johnson should
prepare a report of the examination of the defendant pursuant to the provision of 18,
U.5 Code, Sections 4247(b) and (c). The examination should include: the defendant's
history and present symptoms; a description of the tests employed and the results; the
examiner's findings; and the examiner's opinions as to diagnosis, prognosis, and
"whether the defendant is suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering him
mentally incompetent to the extent that he is unable to understand the nature and
consequences of the proceedings against him or to assist properly in his owij
defense." Copies of the report were ordered to be provided to the Court, counsel for
the defendant, and the Government by 7:00PM on 01/16/98. On 01/l3/98, Judge
Burrell issued an additional Order which directed that trial counsel for the defendant
were to provide Dr. Johnson with copies of each of the letters admitted to the Court
under seal by the defendant and all of the transcripts of ex parte and en camera
hearings. If these materials were included in the competency report, that aspect of the
report would not immediately be given to the Government. Rather, the Government
would be provided the opportunity to petition the Court for access to the excluded
materials at a later date. The trial judge and the defendant's counsel would be given a
copy of the competency report in its entirety. In accordance with these Orders, the
psychiatric evaluation was conducted between 01/12/98 and 01/16/98.
In the indictment filed 06/18/96, Mr. Kaczynski was charged with violations of 18,
U.S. Code, Section 844(d), Transportation of an Explosive with Intent to Kill or
Injure (four counts); 18, U.S Code, Section 1716 Mailing an Explosive Device in an
Attempt to Kill or Injure (three counts); and 18, U.S. Code, Section 924 (c) (1), Use
of a Destructive Device in Relation to a Crime of Violence (three counts). These
charges involved use of an explosive device to kill Hugh Scrutton on or about
12/11/85; the use of an explosive device that injured Dr. Charles Epstein on or about
06/22/93; the use of an explosive device to injure Dr. David Gelernter on or about
06/24/93; and the use of an explosive device to kill Gilbert B. Murray on or about
04/24/95. Mr. Kaczynski is represented by Federal Defenders Quinn Denvir, Judy
Clarke, and Gary Soward. Special Attorneys to the U.S. Attorney General assigned to
this case are Robert J. Cleary, Stephen P. Freccero, R. Steven Lapham, Bernard F.
Hubley, and J. Douglas Wilson.
Extensive collateral information was available for review and use during this
evaluation period. This included copies of Judge Burrell's Court Orders dated
01/09/98, 01/12/98, and 01/13/98; the indictment filed on 06/18/96; extensive
information in regard to the charged offenses; medical records on Mr. Kaczynski,
including a copy of his birth certificate from the State of Illinois; dental records from
William Schauer, DDS, and Thomas Ditchey, DDS, through 1982; University Health
Service records from Harvard University beginning in September 1958; hospital
summary from Billings Hospital in Chicago, Illinois for hospitalization from
09/10/59 to 09/15/59; records from Dr. Walter Peschel in Missoula, Montana;
records and correspondence from Carolyn C. Goren, M.D., April 1991 through
January 1995; records from St. Peters Community Hospital in Helena, Montana;
records from Glen Wielenga, M.D., of Lincoln, Montana for time periods between
1991 and 1993; records from the Sacramento County Jail for the time period between
1996 and 1998; and records from the Health Services Department at the Federal
Correctional Institution (FCI) Dublin, California, for a period of detention from
09/03/97 to 11/06/97.
1975 and 1991 and journals between 1957 and 1971. Also provided was a copy of
the Refutation (a 15 chapter manuscript written by Mr. Kaczynski primarily between
August and November 1997). Pursuant to a Court Order dated 11/13/97, the
examiner was provided copies of the letters written by Mr. Kaczynski to Judge
Garland D. Burrell, Jr., dated 12/18/97 and 01/05/98, and copies of the sealed
reporter draft transcripts dated 12/18/97, 12/19/97, 01/05/98 and 01/07/98 (in camera
proceedings).
The examiner also reviewed the complete set of writings obtained from Mr.
Kaczynski's cabin in Montana. This included a series of journals spanning the time
period of 1960 to present; extensive correspondence by Mr. Kaczynski and to Mr.
Kaczynski; and detailed records of scientific experiments conducted by Mr.
Kaczynski. In addition of review of the extensive collateral information, the
examiner also had the opportunity to visit Mr. Kaczynski's cabin at the storage site
outside of Sacramento and to review extensive photographs of the cabin contents.
Initial interviews were conducted with defense attorneys Quin Denvir, Judy Clarke
and Gary Soward, and prosecuting attorneys Robert Cleary and Stephen Freccero on
01/11/98. Prosecuting attorneys were then interviewed separately on 01/11/98.
Defense attornevs were interviewed on 01/12/98. Additional interviews with both
defense and prosecuting attorneys took place throughout the week, in regard to
obtaining necessary information and managing the boistics of the evaluation process.
Personal interviews were conducted with Wanda Kaczynski, mother of the
defendant, and David Kaczynski, brother of the defendant, on 01/13/98. Phone
interviews were conducted with defense retained experts David Foster, M.D., Raquel
Gur, M.D., Ph.D., Ruben Gur, Ph.D., and Karen Froming, Ph.D.; and prosecution
retained experts Park Dietz, M.D., and Phillip Resnick, M.D. A phone interview was
also conducted with Sherry Woods, librarian in Lincoln, Montana.
At the outset of this evaluation and repeatedly throughout the week, the purpose of
the evaluation and limits of confidentiality of information provided were discussed
with Mr. Kaczynski. He was informed that the information and the observations
made would provide the basis for completion of a report which would be available to
the Judge, as well as the Defense and Prosecuting Attorneys. He was advised that a
provision was in place to protect the privacy of any en camera materials. He
demonstrated an adequate understanding of this information.
Theodore John Kaczynski was born in Chicago, Illinois on 05/22/42. He is the oldest
son born to Theodore Richard Kaczynski and Teresa (Wanda) Dombeck Kaczynski.
He has one brother, David Kaczynski, who is seven years younger, born in 1949. His
father is deceased, having died on 10/02/90 from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to
the head. His father had been diagnosed shortly before his death with lung cancer
with metastasis to the spine. His mother is 80 years old and resides in Schenectady,
New York, near David and his wife Linda.
Mr. Kaczynski's father was initially employed as a sausage maker over the years. He
spent part of his employment working for relatives in that business, but subsequently
obtained employment with a food products company and then with several foam
cutting companies in the Chicago area. He transferred with the latter job to Iowa and
then back to Illinois. He reportedly provided adequately for the family, from a
financial standpoint. He had no clear history of psychiatric illness, although it is
noted that he committed suicide reportedly in response to his poor prognosis and
significant pain related to the diagnosis of cancer. He had no criminal or substance
abuse history. Wanda Kaczynski has spent most of her life working in the home,
although earlier she completed approximately two years of college education. At a
later point, when the family moved to Iowa, she completed her degree in teaching,
and subsequently taught for a few years. Most recently, she was employed in an
office situation on a part time basis. She has no history of diagnosed mental illness,
(REDACTED).
Available reports indicate that the pregnancy with Mr. Kaczynski was full term with
no significant problems prior to delivery. As a young child, he reached
developmental milestones such as sitting up, walking, and talking within normal
parameters. He was hospitalized at the age of approximately nine months, for several
days, as the result of an allergic reaction. Hospital course was apparently uneventful
and he was discharged without known medical sequelae. Conflicting reports exist as
to the significance of that hospitalization. Records reviewed through notes kept in
Mr. Kaczynski's baby book do not provide much information in regard to problems
following that hospitalization. Information provided by Wanda Kaczynski, however,
indicates her perception that his hospitalization was a significant and traumatic event
for her son, in that he experienced a separation from his mother (due to routine
hospital practices). She describes him as having changed after the hospitalization in
that he was withdrawn, less responsive, and more fearful of separation from her after
that point in time. Mr. Kaczynski experienced usual childhood diseases including
mumps and chicken pox, and underwent a tonsillectomy at age six and removal of a
congenital cyst of his upper jaw at age 12 or 13.
Mr. Kaczynski describes his early childhood as relatively uneventful, until the age of
eight or nine. He described memories of early play with other children, although he
too recounts being somewhat fearful of people and describes himself as socially
reserved. He recounts a few significant episodes in his early life referencing the
hospitalization mentioned above, being scalded by boiling water, and falling and
cutting his tongue. Mr. Kaczynski denies any history of physical abuse in his family.
He does admit to receiving occasional spankings, but felt that this was not excessive
or cruel. He does specifically describe extreme verbal and emotional abuse during his
upbringing, although he did not identify this as a problem until he was in his 20s.
The family initially lived in a working class neighborhood in Chicago and Mr.
Kaczynski described the family as having middle class aspirations but living only
one step above the slums. He remembers his mother focusing on his dialect,
encouraging him not to talk like the kids in the street, and responds that he complied
by speaking one way at home and another way when interacting with the other
children.
By the age of eight or nine, Mr. Kaczynski describes that he was no longer well
accepted by the neighborhood children or his peers at school. The neighborhood
children "bordered on delinquency" by his account, and he was not willing or
interested in being involved in their activities. The family moved several times,
bettering their housing status, eventually moving to Evergreen Park, Illinois, when he
was approximately age 10. He describes this as a middle class suburb of Chicago.
Mr. Kaczynski attended kindergarten and grades one through four at Sherman
Elementary School in Chicago. He attended fifth through eighth grade at Evergreen
Park Central School. As the result of testing conducted in the fifth grade, it was
determined that he could skip the sixth grade and enroll with the seventh grade class.
According to various accounts, testing showed him to have a high IQ and, by his
account, his parents were told he was a genius. He claims that his IQ was in the 160
to 170 range. Testing supposedly conducted at that time has not been made available
for review. Mr. Kaczynski described this skipping a grade as a pivotal event in his
life. He remembers not fitting in with the older children and being the subject of
considerable verbal abuse and teasing from them. He did not describe having any
close friends during that period of time.
He attended high school at Evergreen Park Community High School. He did well
overall from an academic standpoint, but reports some difficultly with math in his
sophomore year. He was subsequently placed in a more advanced math class and
mastered the material, then skipped the 11th grade. As the result, he completed his
high school education two years early, although this did require him to take a
summer school course in english. During the latter years of high school he was
encouraged to apply to Harvard, and was subsequently accepted as a student,
beginning in the fall of 1958. He was 16 years old at the time.
During his high school years, Mr. Kaczynski was not involved in many activities. He
did play the trombone and speaks with pride about the lessons he took from a well
known trombone instructor. He denies any involvement in sports or interest in group
activities. After starting college, he was hospitalized briefly and diagnosed as
suffering from infectious mononucleosis. He recovered without significant sequelae.
Mr. Kaczynski describes being happy with the birth of his younger brother, and he
and family report a relatively strong relationship between the boys (when age
differences were taken into consideration), throughout Mr. Kaczynski's school years.
employment at warehouse jobs and factories while looking for the land. From 1971
until the time of his arrest, he was for the most part unemployed and living off the
land, with some limited financial support from his family. Intermittently, he worked
to obtain needed money, which included employment in the fall of 1972 and spring
of 1973 in masonry and groundskeeping jobs. In 1978 and 1979, he worked a few
months at a foam cutting company in Lombard, Illinois, where his father and brother
were employed. He was fired from that job after inappropriate behavior towards the
female manager and subsequently worked briefly at the Prince Castle Restaurant
Equipment Company.
Mr. Kaczynski had no periods of service in the military and indicated he was
deferred from the draft due to his status as a student and later as a teacher.
Prior to his current legal situation, Mr. Kaczynski has had no significant criminal
record of arrests or incarceration. He did receive a traffic ticket for passing a stopped
school bus about 25 years ago. This required him to appear at the Justice of the Peace
Court to resolve the ticket. No attorney representation was involved , he pled guilty,
and paid a fine of $30. He has never retained an attorney for any other reasons. He
has never served as a juror nor been a plaintiff in a legal action.
Mr. Kacynski denies any significant history of substance use or abuse, including
alcohol or nicotine. This is confirmed by other sources of collateral information.
(REDACTED).
Results from that study will be discussed in the psychological testing portion of this
report.
Beginning in the spring of 1988, Mr. Kaczynski made several contacts with mental
health systems around the issue of establishing relationships with women. He
indicates that in 1988 he was suffering from insomnia and a renewed interest in
getting advice and moral support to establish a relationship with a woman. He
describes picking a psychologist's name out of the phone book and writing her a
letter about his interest. He indicates that his decision to seek this type of counseling
resulted after having a dream about a young woman. Upon awakening he had the
idea that perhaps at age 45 it was not too late for him to establish a relationship, and
at that point he thought of leaving his isolated life in Montana and finding a job and a
female for himself. As noted, he sent a detailed letter to the therapist and saw her
once. He had a positive experience in the session and subsequently sought
employment. He states that during the session the therapist, Elizabeth Gilbertson, had
mentioned the thought of her arranging a meeting with him and some of her female
clients. He subsequently wrote her a letter with the hopes of reminding her to do so,
but she did not pick up on his implied message. He also came to the realization that
he could not afford to see her regularly, although he could have afforded one more
visit. Subsequent to that session, he wrote to the Mental Health Center in Helena,
requesting that he be assigned a therapist or counselor with whom he could
correspond by mail. Mr. Kaczynski indicates that this could not be worked out and he
remained depressed for the next several months. Although the depression lightened
eventually, it remained there to some degree until 1994.
In 1991 Mr. Kaczynski contacted a local general practitioner, Dr. Glen Wielenga, in
Lincoln, concerning insomnia. Mr. Kaczynski indicates the doctor suspected he was
depressed, but he was somewhat dissatisfied with Dr. Wielenga's assessment. Dr.
Wielenga did prescribe Trazadone at a dose of 5Omg at bedtime. Mr. Kaczynski took
it for three days. It made him sleep, but he experienced daytime drowsiness and gas
from it, and discontinued the medication. He subsequently wrote to the Mental
Health Center in Great Falls, asking for recommendation of a few people he could
contact in regard to finding a psychiatrist, but did not follow through and his
insomnia remitted without treatment.
Records indicate that Mr. Kaczynski saw Dr. Gilbertson as noted above. He also
made contact via letter to Dr. Melnick, a psychiatrist in Missouri. He was
subsequently unable to afford her fees.
Around this same time, in the spring of 1991, he set up an appointment with Carolyn
Goren, M.D., in Missoula, Montana. He sought evaluation and treatment for
symptoms of palpitations and stress. Prior to his visit, he sent Dr. Goren a letter
outlining his concerns. He was seen on 04/29/91, and subsequently had one follow
up visit some months later. After his initial visit, Mr. Kaczynski continued to monitor
his blood pressure, which remained within normal limits, and provided these values
to Dr. Goren on a semi annual basis for several years. No significant cardiac
problems were identified during his evaluation time. Collateral information also
supports that Mr. Kaczynski sent a letter to the Director of the Golden Triangle
Community Mental Health Center in October 1993 concerning his problem of
insomnia and asking for location of a suitable psychiatrist that he could see on a
reduced fee. There was no follow through with an appointment. Mr. Kaczynski had
no other mental health contacts prior to the period after his arrest on the current
charges. (REDACTED).
Following his visit to Dr. Goren and his belief that perhaps the potential of an
ongoing relationship existed with her, he made the decision to acquire a more
conventional career. He decided to attend school at the undergraduate level to obtain
a degree in journalism. He corresponded with the University of Montana and
subsequently was required to take the Graduate Record Exam. Even after he
determined that there was not a possibility of an actual relationship with Dr. Goren,
he took the exam anyway and reportedly scored quite well. He never matriculated to
the University.
It is of note that after leaving his job at the University of California at Berkeley, Mr.
Kaczynski spent approximately two years attempting to locate a piece of wilderness
land upon which he could live, isolated from society. In 1971 he succeeded in
building a small cabin on a piece of land that he purchased in conjunction with his
brother, in Lincoln, Montana. From 1971 until his arrest on 04/03/96, Mr.
Kaczynski's primary residence was HCR 30, Box 27, Lincoln, Montana 59630. The
cabin was situated a short distance off a road, but the approximately one and one-half
acre of land provided him solitude and ready access to wilderness area. Although he
had neighbors in the vicinity, he was able to maintain minimal contact with them if
he so chose. During that time period, he made an effort to live off the land and over a
period of years, developed increased sophistication with identification of edible
plants, gardening, food preservation, hunting, and game preservation, and developed
some necessary skills in the area of tool making and sewing. The cabin was not
equipped with any plumbing and his water supply was provided by a creek located
near the cabin. He did not have any electricity at the house, although hook up was
available nearby. During the early years of his residence there, he had a car and
subsequently for a short time a pick up truck. After that, he maintained a bicycle for
transportation or walked into town, where he had access to public transportation. The
cabin was located approximately four miles outside of Lincoln. Mr. Kaczynski
remained there, except for several short periods where he traveled and sought
employment to earn some money. He was provided with a minimal stipend from his
parents throughout this time period and used the money he had originally earned at
Berkeley and other intermittent jobs to support himself. He estimated that it generally
cost him less that $400 a year to live, after he became established in his routine.
In June 1969, after leaving his job at Berkeley, Mr. Kaczynski moved to Lombard,
Illinois to stay with his parents. That summer he and David traveled to Canada,
looking for a piece of wilderness land for Mr. Kaczynski to buy. He applied for
permission to purchase land in British Columbia. During that time, David was
enrolled at Columbia University. Following his graduation in 1970, David moved to
Great Falls, Montana. Throughout the summer of 1970, Mr. Kaczynski continued to
look for wilderness land in Alaska and subsequently learned that his application for
land in Canada was denied. He had a short period of employment for a few months at
the end of 1970 with Abbot Consultants in Elmherst, Illinois. In the summer of 1971
he purchased his land in Lincoln, where he built his cabin with minimal assistance
from his brother. During the period of late 1972 until December 1973, Mr. Kaczynski
worked at a variety of jobs in Chicago and Salt Lake City, Utah. He returned to his
cabin in Montana in June 1973. In September 1974, for two to three weeks, he
worked at a gas station in Montana, earning a few hundred dollars. In January 1975
he traveled to Oakland, California, and returned to his cabin in March. In May 1978
he returned to Chicago in search of work and obtained employment at Foam Cutting
Engineers, where his father and brother were employed. He continued in that job for
about a month, until he was fired. He was subsequently employed by Prince Castle
from September 1978 until March 1979. After quitting his job at Prince Castle, he
lived with his parents in Lombard, Illinois and in the early summer of 1979 returned
to his cabin in Montana. He remained there until mid 1980, when he traveled to
Canada, again in search of wilderness land. Upon his return and with his lack of
success in finding wilderness, he settled into his cabin where he remained in
residence until the time of this arrest on the current charges.
While residing in his cabin, he would regularly travel to town for supplies, go to the
Post Office, and use the Library. Periodically he would travel beyond Lincoln. This
was usually accomplished by bus.
Over the time period from 1969 until his arrest, Mr. Kaczynski recorded many of his
thoughts, ideas, and activities in writing and maintained these writings in his cabin.
He also maintained correspondence with his family over a number of years and saved
much of that correspondence. Review of these extensive writings provides a narrative
and his own analysis of his life and behaviors.
and high school years, including a discussion of making a small pipe bomb in
chemistry, which gained him some notoriety. He described himself as having
"frustrated resentment towards school parents, and the student body" which often
was given outlet through "snotty behavior in the classroom which often took a
sarcastic or crudely humorous turn."
(REDACTED).
He admits that he was "probably a very difficult teenager to live with" and that his
parents "were in some respect generous and unselfish." He describes developing a
"system of morality that evolved into an abstract artificial construction that could not
possibly be applied in practice" but never telling anybody about this system because
he knew they would never take it seriously. At the same time, he describes looking
for a way to justify hating people. At times in his writings, he focuses, in an
extraordinary amount of detail, on passing or short lived relationships or potential
relationships with females. This is illustrated by his discussion of his relationships
with (REDACTED) when he was 10, (REDACTED) when he was 16,
(REDACTED) when he was 17, (REDACTED) when he was 32, "Ms. Z" when he
was in graduate school, and (REDACTED) when he was 36.
Mr. Kaczynski writes about his experiences at Harvard and in essence describes a
very isolated existence, with only infrequent interactions with other students. It was
not until his sophomore year that he made a few brief friendships, but due to
circumstances they did not persist. As noted, in his sophomore year he participated in
a research study at Harvard, conducted by Professor Murray, which looked at the
psychological functioning of young men at Harvard.
Mr. Kaczynski claimed in his writing, that during his college years he had fantasies
of living a primitive life and fantasized himself as "an agitator, rousing mobs to
frenzies of revolutionary violence." He claims that during that time he started to think
about breaking away from normal society. He describes that beginning in college he
began to worry about his health in particular ways, always having a fear that a
symptom could result in something serious. He also claims that during high school
and college he would often become terribly angry because he could not express that
anger or hatred openly. "I would therefore indulge in fantasies of revenge. However,
I never attempted to put any such fantasies into effect because I was too strongly
conditioned ... against any defiance of authority. To be more precise, I could not have
committed a crime of revenge even a relatively minor crime because of my fear of
being caught and punished was all out of proportion to the actual danger of being
caught." He describes that as a result, he had little comfort from his fantasies of
revenge. He describes a vivid memory of a nightmare in his senior year at Harvard
wherein he saw his trombone teacher standing in a room looking like a noble old
man, he then saw a mist and heard angels, and when the mist cleared the teacher had
been transformed into a bent, senile, old wreck. He describes at length his inability to
figure out whether or not he was attractive to women and references a passing
comment of a friend of his family's at the age of 15, that made him believe he was
quite attractive.
During the time period after leaving Harvard, he began to study information about
wild edible plants, and began to fear the possibility of being drafted. He spent some
time hiking and learning about the wilderness.
It was during that period of time that he was staying at a rooming house, managed by
a graduate student, (REDACTED). He began to experience difficulty with the noise
from the other rooms, particularly the sounds resulting from sexual activity of other
renters. He reported the noises he heard in the house to the University System, with
the hope that action would be taken against Mr. (REDACTED). He describes three
experiences where he perceived he overheard the landlord providing negative
information about him which subsequently resulted in a negative outcome. The first
involved an Engineering student by the name of (REDACTED), who was coming
over to get help with math problems. Although Mr. Kaczynski couldn't clearly hear a
conversation, he eventually heard a statement by (REDACTED) indicating that he
had "only come to get help with math." He perceived that Mr. (REDACTED) must
have said something negative to (REDACTED) about him. On the second occasion,
he had given an individual information about rooms to rent at the house where he
was residing. Again, he heard a voice which he thought belonged to the individual he
had spoken with, but he never came up to see him, and the next time he saw him, he
was snubbed by him. On the third occasion, he had received a letter from his mother
referencing that the daughter of some of their friends was interested in the woods and
might like to look him up; they had given her his address. Subsequently, several
weeks later he thought he overheard a woman's voice in the foyer area of the house
and Mr. (REDACTED) say "Oh hi (REDACTED)" and then he said something
negative about him, and the woman left without ever visiting him.
(REDACTED).
In the summer after his fourth year, he describes experiencing a period of several
weeks where he was sexually excited nearly all the time and was fantasizing himself
as a woman and being unable to obtain any sexual relief. He decided to make an
effort to have a sex change operation. When he returned to the University of
Michigan he made an appointment to see a psychiatrist to be examined to determine
if the sex change would be good for him. He claimed that by putting on an act he
could con the psychiatrist into thinking him suitable for a feminine role even though
his motive was exclusively erotic. As he was sitting in the waiting room, he turned
completely against the idea of the operation and thus, when he saw the doctor,
instead claimed he was depressed about the possibility of being drafted. He describes
the following, "As I walked away from the building afterwards, I felt disgusted about
what my uncontrolled sexual cravings had almost led me to do and I felt humiliated,
and I violently hated the psychiatrist. Just then there came a major turning point in
my life. Like a Phoenix, I burst from the ashes of my despair to a glorious new hope.
I thought I wanted to kill that psychiatrist because the future looked utterly empty to
me. I felt I wouldn't care if I died. And so I said to myself why not really kill the
psychiatrist and anyone else whom I hate. What is important is not the words that ran
through my mind but the way I felt about them. What was entirely new was the fact
that I really felt I could kill someone. My very hopelessness had liberated me
because I no longer cared about death. I no longer cared about consequences and I
said to myself that I really could break out of my rut in life an do things that were
daring, irresponsible or criminal." He describes his first thought was to kill someone
he hated and then kill himself, but decided he could not relinquish his rights so
easily. At that point he decided "I will kill but I will make at least some effort to
avoid detection so that I can kill again." He decided that he would do what he always
wanted to do, to go to Canada to take off in the woods with a rifle and try to live off
the country. "If it doesn't work and if I can get back to civilization before I starve
then I will come back here and kill someone I hate." In his writings he emphasized
what he knew was the fact that he now felt he had the courage to behave
irresponsibly.
Mr. Kaczynski describes in his writing and on interview, that these thoughts went
through his mind in the time it took to walk about one block. This new understanding
persisted from that point on in his life. He developed a plan to complete his degree
and to work for two years, so as to save enough money to live in the wilderness. As
already noted, this plan was accomplished through teaching for two years in
Berkeley and subsequently locating land and building his cabin in Montana. During
that time period he writes that he would have to discipline himself to avoid reading
newspapers except occasionally because if "I read papers regularly I would build up
too much tense and frustrated anger against politicians, dictators, businessmen,
scientists, communists, and others in the world who were doing things that
endangered me or changed the world in ways I resented."
In the early 1970s Mr. Kaczynski wrote an essay summarizing some of his ideas and
made an effort to circulate it to others who might share them. He received no
responses. In essence, the essay outlined his response to a book written by Jacques
He wrote in his journal about him not fitting into organized society and not wanting
to fit into it, and seeking avenues of escape from it. In his words in the early 1970s,
he wrote "True I would not fit into the present society in any case but that is not an
intolerable situation. What makes a situation intolerable is the fact that in all
probability, the values that I detest, will soon be achieved through science, an utterly
complete and permanent victory throughout the whole world, with a total extrication
of everything I value. Through super human computers and mind control there
simply will be no place for a rebellious person to hide and my kind of people will
vanish forever from the earth. It's not merely the fact that I cannot fit into society that
has induced me to rebel, as violently as I have, it is the fact that I can see society
made possible by science inexorably imposing on me."
Near the end of his autobiography in 1979, Mr. Kaczynski describes his motives for
writing, to include that he intended to start killing people and that when caught, he
was concerned people would perceive him to be a "sickie." His writings were an
effort to prevent the facts of his psychology from being misrepresented. He also
describes some type of relief, sexual or otherwise, he obtains by writing. He
describes his sources of hatred as his perceived social rejection and the "fact that
organized society frustrates my very powerful urge for physical freedom and
personal autonomy." He also describes experiencing anger from other sources and
then turning his hatred towards organized society.
Mr. Kaczynski's mother, Wanda, and his brother, David, were interviewed together
during the evaluation. They were allowed ample time to provide any information that
they believed might be pertinent about Mr. Kaczynski's life prior to arrest. Evident
was a sense of guilt on David's part, for feeling compelled to assist in having his
brother arrested. Wanda Kaczynski clearly was experiencing significant distress as
she tried to develop an understanding of what had happened with her son over the
years. Both of them provided a significant amount of detail about various instances
and events in Mr. Kaczynski's life. His mother identified her amazement that "out of
the blue" Mr. Kaczynski would express extreme anger and go into excessive detail
about relatively minor events. She used an example where she had yelled at both
sons about their need to put dirty socks in a hamper. Twenty years later she received
a letter from Mr. Kaczynski in which he scolded and demeaned her for not
understanding that it was normal for adolescents to have sloppy rooms. Both Wanda
and David Kaczynski recounted several periods of acute withdrawal by Mr.
Kaczynski. The initial incident occurred on the plane, when Mr. Kaczynski and his
father were returning from a visit to Harvard. Apparently he was angry and
withdrawn and refused to talk. A second episode occurred while David and Mr.
Kaczynski were on a trip, hiking in the woods. Mr. Kaczynski apparently sat down
on a log, and by David's account, was essentially nonresponsive for several hours.
After that period of time he seemed to resume normal activity. The third episode
occurred when his parents were visiting in Montana, at David's apartment.
Apparently Mr. Kaczynski experienced that episode in the living room and remained
unresponsive throughout the late afternoon and evening hours. It is notable that the
family may not have perceived this as particularly unusual at the time, in that they all
went to bed without resolution of the situation. It was evident during my interview
with them, that they have a tremendous need to try to understand the events that have
happened, and in that light present material in a somewhat conclusary fashion.
Nonetheless, they were able to provide additional detail about a variety of events Mr.
Kaczynski had written about in his journals or had discussed on interview.
Collateral information indicates that over an extended period of time, ranging from
the early 1970s, Mr. Kaczynski is alleged to have been involved in a variety of acts
of vandalism and violence. A description of those events provides a complimenting
view of the history described in his autobiography and journals. His writings
obtained in the cabin also include detailed accounts of the activities alleged to have
occurred. The materials are voluminous, organized, and some of them are in Spanish
or coded with a complicated code allegedly developed by Mr. Kaczynski. After
solidification of his ideas in the fall of 1966, it appears that he organized his life and
behavior around his belief system. He reacted against individuals in the area by
ruining equipment, stealing things, or attempting to harm individuals through use of
wires and traps. His writings describe him thinking seriously about and planning to
murder a scientist in 1971. During the later 1970s, he began experimenting to create
explosive devices that could succeed in killing individuals. He also describes
thoughts of harming people whom he felt had humiliated him. Specific examples of
this described in collateral information and during interviews, include his plans to
mutilate the face of (REDACTED), after he felt she degraded him by her lack of
interest in a continuing romantic relationship.
His writings show him to be associated with placing a bomb at the University of
Illinois in May 1978 which partially exploded. It is alleged that in May 1979 he
placed a bomb contained in a cigar box which exploded when John Harris, a student
at Northwestern University, opened it. It is alleged that in November 1979 he
succeeded in getting a bomb aboard American Airlines Flight 444 from Chicago; the
bomb exploded en route, causing an emergency landing. It is alleged that in June
1980 he mailed a bomb to Percy Wood, which exploded causing injury. It is alleged
that in October 1981 he placed a bomb at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City,
which detonated without injury. It is alleged that in May 1982 he sent a bomb to
Professor Patrick C. Fischer at Vanderbilt, which was opened by his secretary, Janet
Smith, causing serious injuries. It is alleged that in July 1982 he placed a bomb that
exploded when it was moved by Professor Diogenes Angelakos, Director of
Research at the University of California at Berkeley. It is alleged that in June 1985 he
mailed a bomb to Boeing, which was detonated without in injury. It is alleged that in
May 1985 he placed a bomb at the University of California at Berkeley which
Mr. Kaczynski was arrested on 04/03/96 at his cabin in Montana. He was detained
while the cabin was searched and was subsequently transported to a jail facility in
Montana. Thereafter he was transferred to Sacramento County Jail in Sacramento,
California.
In regard to his legal representation post arrest, it is noted that at the time of his arrest
Mr. Kaczynski inquired about the process of obtaining a Federal Defender as his
attorney. He was subsequently represented by Michael Donohoe until he was moved
to Sacramento. At that time a defense team consisting of Quin Denvir, Judy Clarke,
and Gary Soward was established to represent him on the charges discussed above.
For a several month period in the fall of 1997, he was moved from the Sacramento
County Jail to FCI in Dublin, California due to his difficulty adapting to the noise of
the jail in Sacramento. He was returned to Sacramento prior to trial so as to have
closer access to his attorneys.
Prior to this evaluation, a number of other defense and prosecution retained clinicians
had the opportunity to either interview Mr. Kaczynski, review his writings, or
administer testing, and their declarations were made available. Data reviewed
included copies of neuropychological testing conducted by David Watkins, Ph.D,
Karen Froming, Ph.D., and Ruben Gur, Ph.D.; a Summary of Neuropsychiatric
Evaluation of Theodore Kaczynski dated 11/15/97, prepared by Raquel Cur, M.D.,
Ph.D., and Ruben C. Gur, Ph.D.; and a listing of the names, addresses, and phone
numbers of the defense and prosecution retained experts. As noted, the examiner had
the opportunity to speak by phone with several of these clinicians.
Shortly after Mr. Kaczynski's arrest while still housed in Montana, Dale Watson,
Ph.D., administered a battery of psychological tests to Mr. Kaczynski. No report of
his findings is available, but the test results were interpreted and expanded upon by
two other defense experts, Ruben Gur, Ph.D., and Karen Froming, Ph.D. On
O6/15/96 and 06/16/96, Mr. Kaczynski was interviewed by Raquel Gur, M.D., Pn.D.,
and neuropsychological testing was conducted by Ruben Gur. It was Dr. Raquel
Gur's impression that Mr. Kaczynski met the diagnostic criteria for Schizophrenia,
Paranoid Type, and Dr. Ruben Cur's impression that the testing was not inconsistent
with this. After sharing their opinions with Mr. Kaczynski, he refused to talk with
them further and expressed his wish for his defense attorney to avoid further use of
their services or bringing their findings to light.
Dr. Froming also interviewed Mr. Kaczynski in February 1997 and complete
additional neuropsychological testing. She also reviewed previous testing done after
he entered Harvard. Phone interview revealed that Mr. Kaczynski also had been
administered the TAT (Thematic Apperception Test) during that period, but it had
never been scored. She scored it and indicated that the themes he presented
throughout the test consisted of people being dominated by others, that his responses
showed no personal interactions through any of the cards, and showed a complete
absence of affiliation. She opined that Mr. Kaczynski was suffering from Paranoid
Schizophrenia. She indicated that Mr. Kaczynski refused to talk with her further after
she shared her opinion with him.
David Foster, M.D., evaluated Mr. Kaczynski in late 1997 and opined that Mr.
Kaczynski had an aversion to evaluation by psychiatrists and he suffered from
Paranoid Schizophrenia. Mr. Kaczynski refused to talk with him further after he
shared his opinions and was absent over the Christmas holiday period.
The declaration of Xavier Amador, Ph.D., was also reviewed. Although he did not
see Mr. Kaczynski, he opined that he suffered from Schizophrenia and claimed Mr.
Kaczynski's reluctance to submit to psychiatric evaluations and treatment were a
hallmark of Schizophrenia.
The prosecution retained experts Phillip Resnick, M.D., and Park Dietz, M.D.,
M.P.H., Ph.D., did not have access to Mr. Kaczynski for interview, but based on
review of erials and interview of people in the Lincoln, Montana area, they opined
that Mr. Kaczynski would be capable of being evaluated by government psychiatrists
and they saw no evidence that he suffered from delusions. They viewed his
psychiatric problems as falling in the Schizoid or Schizotypal range of personality
disorders. John T. Kenny, Ph.D., critiqued the neuropsychological testing that had
been conducted with Mr. Kaczynski. He did not view the results to be specific to a
diagnosis of Schizophrenia.
She described Mr. Kaczynski as living a life style consistent with his beliefs and
admired him for that. She enjoyed talking with him about his beliefs and indicated he
had very strong feelings against government. Although she had the idea that their
conversations never changed his opinions, he patiently listened to her ideas and made
her feel that her thoughts were worthwhile. He would come to the Library on the
average of every week or two, and usually stayed from one to two hours in the
reference room. She would attempt to read his mood when he entered the Library and
so there were times when it was clear he was willing to talk, and other times when he
wanted to be left alone. He ordered numerous books through the inter library loan
program, including some that she described as deeply intellectual. He read a wide
It was her belief that in the year prior to his arrest, he started changing and this scared
her. She viewed him as more intense and focused, and less interested in interacting.
She believed that this change was due to his concern for a friend of his who was an
illegal alien and had been hurt on the job and then deported. At one point he showed
her a letter he was writing to some government official regarding this subject, and
she was surprised he gave it to her. He indicated to her that he was meeting with
friends in Colorado or California to try to help his friend. During that time period he
appeared more withdrawn and would spend two to three hours at a time "writing like
crazy" and then he quit coming into the Library. She does indicate that over the
years, he occasionally helped around the Library by boxing books, shoveling snow,
cleaning up, or painting. At one point the Library planned an open house and Mr.
Kaczynski came to that function. Ms. Wood indicated that she did visit Mr.
Kaczynski in jail. He has been corresponding intermittently to her, but she indicates
it is actually she who is trying to maintain the correspondence as a means of support.
In the last several letters prior to Christmas, she perceived that he was feeling down
so she has been writing more often. She believes that the significance of his situation
is all "coming home to roost."
Routine laboratory studies conducted following his suicide attempt were within
normal limits, except for an elevated triglyceride level that was considered to be
nonfasting. He remained on suicide watch until 01/12/98.
Pertinent history in regard to the suicide attempt included the fact that Mr. Kaczynski
had felt frustrated and depressed over the way his trial was progressing. He had
developed conflicts with his attorneys which he viewed as impossible to resolve. He
perceived that he would not be able to represent himself or obtain alternate counsel
and decided to kill himself instead of proceeding to trial with a defense strategy that
he did not want.
Information provided through the attorneys, Sacramento County Jail personnel, and
the Jail records, indicate that Mr. Kaczynski has, with the exception of his suicide
attempt, been a cooperative and easy to manage prisoner. His housing has been
single cell, with limited access to exercise, and essentially no contact with other
prisoners. He quickly understood the rules and routines of the jail setting and
demonstrated an awareness of how to access medical care or intervention for other
reasons. As noted, he did report significant sleep disturbance in the jail, which he
attributed to excessive noise during the night time hours. He verbalizes a need for a
full eight hours of sleep and it is unclear how accurate that assessment is. He did
discuss the problem with Jail staff and for a short period of time was given a
prescription for Melatonin. He claims some confusion occurred about dispensing the
medication, and he was given an alternate medication. He did not take that
medication, and decided not to pursue medications to aid his sleep cycle. Mr.
Kaczynski reports that once he was moved to FCI Dublin, his sleep improved. Upon
return to the Jail he was housed in a quieter area and has not had significant problems
with insomnia since that time.
Mr. Kaczynski's mental status exam remained fairly consistent throughout the week
of interviews. Description will be interspersed with pertinent historical mental status
information. Mr. Kaczynski appeared as a slender build, gray haired, white male,
who showed adequate hygiene and was dressed in orange jail clothing and a T shirt.
He carried his glasses with him and utilized them while reading and writing during
the interviews. He was oriented to person, date, time, place and situation. He
understood tbe type and purpose of the evaluation and expressed his intent to
cooperate. Throughout the evaluation he answered questions to the best of his ability,
was able to discuss information, and relate a narrative without prompting. No
abnormality of gait was noted. No psychomotor retardation was evident. There was
no evidence of tremor, tics or unusual mannerisms. Eye contact was good, although
when asked a question that he perceived as difficult, or one to which it appeared he
was not sure how he should respond, he tended to look down and avoid further eye
contact until his answer was prepared. During those times, he would also at times
clench his hands together and pat them on the table, and appeared to be actually in
some distress in his efforts to formulate a response. This only happened on a few
occasions throughout the interviews. Speech was of normal rate and tone.
He did demonstrate some need for excessive explanation and often focused on
details. In addition, the information he initially supplied in response to questions was
frequently given verbatim from the information available in his voluminous writings.
When pressed to expand on the issue, he presented some minor trouble in rewording
his answer or in expanding or explaining it, but persisted with the examiner in an
effort to accomplish the task. There was no evidence of the use of neologisms or
clang associations. The volume of his speech was appropriate from a conversational
standpoint and he would identify if he had any problems hearing a question or
conversation above the noise of the jail. He seemed intent on clearly understanding
questions posed to him. No evidence existed during the exam of any hearing
problem. He showed the capacity to remain in the interview process for periods of
several hours without demonstrating undue anxiety or restlessness. On one occasion
he did identify to the examiner that he was nervous during the interview and he had
not felt that experience with other individuals who were interviewing him regarding
mental health issues. This topic was discussed, he was able to relax, and it did not
interfere with progression of the evaluation.
Mr. Kaczynski denied any current suicidal ideation. He talked openly about his
previous suicidal ideation and attempt on Wednesday. He admitted that he had felt
desperate and could not perceive a suitable option. He chose to attempt to die instead
of proceed with the trial process. He indicated that the experience in the attempt, in
and of itself, had dissuaded him from further attempts utilizing that method and he
does not anticipate having access to medication or sharp instruments with which to
try suicide by an alternate means. He does admit that if he becomes suicidal again, he
would not be likely to discuss this with anyone, and indicated that he did not believe
that his efforts were stemming from depression. He was able to entertain the idea that
if he were to develop suicidal ideation as the result of significant mood problems, he
would be more willing to seek help or intervention. Mr. Kaczynski denied any
current homicidal ideation, although he admitted to having significant anger towards
a number of people.
Evaluation of his affect showed little variation from what would be expected in this
type of evaluation setting. He showed some anxiety but denied depression now or in
recent weeks. He did admit to moderate feelings of depression early in his period of
detention and discussed several periods of depression throughout his life. He
indicated that he believes in the period between 1978 and 1979 he was experiencing
some degree of depression, accompanied by insomnia. He attributed this to a
stressful life situation including a difficult situation he described on his job. He
indicated that he had started a relationship with a female manager at the foam cutting
plant where he was working with his brother and father. After three dates that
relationship had failed. (REDACTED). He remembers contemplating suicide by
hanging at that time, and then describes that he became full of rage and instead
decided to take a knife and mutilate the woman. He proceeded to the parking lot at
the work site and got into her car. At that time he changed his mind and again felt
very sad. A second period of depression, that he relates was of longer duration,
lasting from 1988 to 1994. Again he had intermittent trouble sleeping and felt that
during that time he was under a great degree of stress. He denied any period of
depression since that point in time. As noted above, Mr. Kaczynski did seek medical
evaluation of insomnia which he believes was related to depression, on one occasion
in 1993, and was prescribed Trazadone, but did not continue that prescription. He
described his mood since the year prior to his arrest as consistently being about six
on a scale of one to 10. He denied any periods of elevated mood and demonstrated
none throughout the evaluation period.
Mr. Kaczynski did return repeatedly to the theme that he had been severely abused
during childhood. On exploration of this issue, he described the abuse to be severe
verbal psychological abuse. His perception seemed to be inconsistent with the data
he provided to support his point of view, in that he over valued the negative impact
of very minor statements and rather routine behaviors. He also demonstrated some
suspiciousness and paranoia in the interviews, in that he continued to anticipate that
the interviewer had a hidden motive or meaning to a question, and during each
session would both verbally and in writing ask for additional detail and present
additional arguments of positions or opinions that he had espoused during a prior
session.
Mr. Kaczynski presented a clearly organized belief system that he was being
harassed and harmed by modern technology. He stated that he believed that the
system as it exists is bad and rebellion against it is justified. He further stated that
freedom and personal dignity have greater importance than comfort and security.
This belief system was explored at length with Mr. Kaczynski and it was evident that
it had developed in his early 20s, during a period of time when he was feeling
particularly isolated. This appear to stem from his acceptance of a variety of ideas
that he had culled from reading books such as the "Technological Society"
referenced above. It is interesting that he had not only latched onto the ideas that
were presented, but had expanded them to the extreme and accepted the suggestions
and premises, many of which were only opinions stated by the authors, as if they
were fact. He has subsequently devoted his activities and time in rebellion against a
future as he accepted it would be. In essence, the ideas that he collected and wrote
about in the early 1970s remain the basis for his current belief system. He feels
compelled to live a life of extreme isolation and to focus his energy against the
aspects of society that are attempting to control the masses. This includes a focus on
advertising, genetic engineering, computer technology, business, certain aspects of
education, chemical companies, etc. He expresses philosophical and personal
concerns about these issues and feels personally threatened by the potential advances
in these areas. Included in this is his inability to critically read newspapers,
magazines, and books to determine if statements carry any actual merit. He tends to
collect pieces of literature, opinions, and comments that support his views and use
them as justification for continuation of his ideas. Mr. Kaczynski has intertwined his
two belief systems, that society is bad and he should rebel against it, and his intense
anger at his family for his perceived injustices. He talks openly about his ability to
direct his anger from one set of ideas to the other quite fluidly.
Upon extended interview, it was evident that Mr. Kaczynski is extremely sensitive to
even minor criticism and tends to perceive this, or even an absence of encouragement
or positive response from an individual, as a deliberate attempt at humiliation or
harassment. He also tends to seek support and interaction in ineffective ways and will
frequently write an individual believing that an innocuous question will provide a
hint of the type of response that he is looking for from the person receiving his
correspondence. Evident also is his inability to identify common social cues in the
environment. Historically, this appears to have been a problem even before
solidification of his ideas in the late 196Os and early 1970s. There is evidence of
ideas of reference in review of Mr. Kaczynski's history over an extended period of
time. Incidents within the environment involving noise or human activity are
perceived by him as personally directed and he responds with extreme rage and a
wish for revenge. As outlined in the body of this report, historically during certain
time periods he has described examples of what appear to be ideas of reference in his
belief that individuals who are talking at some distance from him, have him as a topic
of their conversation and are speaking negatively about him, and are impacting in a
destructive or hostile way on his well being.
Despite Mr. Kaczynski's ability for abstract reasoning in response to proverbs and
similarities, he tends to concretely interpret the statements of individuals. He
becomes quite focused on the words of a comment, to the exclusion of focusing on
the actual meaning of the phrase. Although he demonstrated the capacity to use
humor within the interviews, he could not interpret light comments or attempt at
teasing within the interviews and needed to have an explanation to clarify the
meaning of such interactions. When asked about the basis of his belief system he
attempted to provide excessive supporting evidence. When challenged on the initial
premise, he appeared perplexed and it was evident that he did not challenge the belief
system on his own regardless of existing evidence.
It does appear that Mr. Kaczynski's investment and convictions about the outcome of
modern technology and the alleged abuse by his family are consistent with fixed
belief in that he does not challenge them in response to new information. Both of
these systems could be viewed as meeting the criteria of nonbizarre delusional
beliefs. The certainty of this, however, is clouded by he duration of these beliefs and
the adaptation he has made by extreme social isolation.
Mr. Kaczynski's judgement is viewed as being poor, both from the basis of review of
collateral information and observations within the interviews. He was unable to
modify the presentation of his responses within the interviews to present information
in a less negative light.
Evident throughout the interviews was marked ambivalence and this was apparent
throughout his writings. He clearly exhibited the capacity to hold opposite and
conflicting feelings toward the same person or issue, and showed no insight into this.
He frequently expressed both hatred and a wish for revenge and love and affection
for the same individual. He did show the capacity for sadness in interviews and
would frequently tear up when remembering fleeting relationships he had with
individuals. In that regard, it was noted that he tends to form very rapid intense
emotional attachments to individuals, primarily women, but also men.
(REDACTED). Historically, he has developed love relationships that were never
reciprocated with individuals and maintained them for extended periods of time,
idealizing them and at time devaluing them. An example is a relationship he wished
he had developed with (REDACTED) when he was a young student at Harvard. He
was able to identify that even at the age of 43, he had tracked her down and written
her regarding the details of that relationship, which had never actually developed. He
expressed regret that he had not heard back tram her. He also demonstrated a
propensity to focus on passing comments in regard to his self-image and to utilize
those comments and incorporate them in an unusual way into his thought processes.
An example is referencing a comment made by an older Italian woman when he was
15, that he was beautiful boy, especially his eyes. It was not until 1994 at the age of
50, that he further explored this issue and asked another woman, whom he did not
know well, whether he was physically attractive. He indicated she responded he was
"run of the mill" and at that point in time he no longer wondered why he had never
developed a successful relationship with a woman. As described, he had grappled
with that issue for more than 30 years because he had been told he was physically
attractive at the age of 15 and he held onto that belief; so he could never understand
why women were not attracted. Having now been told by another female in 1994 that
he was simply average in looks, it immediately provided him with an explanation for
why he had never established a relationship with a woman.
Mr. Kaczynski is a prolific writer. There is much repetition in his writings, which he
does not appear fully able to appreciate. He currently exhibits a preoccupation with a
need to negatively portray his family, and has in the midst of trial preparations, spent
over four months writing an angry accusatory manuscript to "set the record straight."
This consists of a rehashing of all the perceived injustices and a detailed focus on
descriptions of events and conversations. Again, throughout this document, his
ambivalence is evident. He openly describes his propensity towards anger and the
satisfaction he feels from an act of revenge. He describes periods of stress in his life
that seen related with him focusing on projects such as writing the Refutation,
developing a new experiment, or dealing with a perceived slight or humiliation.
Coupled with this, he has had numerous periods of dysthymia and insomnia. He has
demonstrated no change in his appetite and no significant gain or loss of weight. His
current sleep cycle appears adequate.
Review of the issue of competency to stand trial began with a review of the events
that led up to this evaluation. An initial meeting was held with all of the attorneys
involved in this case to review the status of the proceedings thus far. Subsequently
both the prosecuting and defense attorneys were interviewed separately to obtain
their observations of the defendant and his abilities to follow courtroom proceedings
and assist in his own defense. Through a supplemental Court Order, the examiner
had the opportunity to review letters (12/18/97 and 01/05/98) and en camera
proceedings regarding hearings that had occurred on 11/21/97 (referenced by the
defendant as 11/25/97). Transcripts regarding en camera hearing on 12/18/97,
12/19/97, 12/22/97, 12/25/97, 01/05/98, and 01/07/98 were reviewed as well as the
public transcripts for 11/21/97, 01/05/98 and 01/07/98.
Mr. Kaczynski was arrested on 04/03/96 and initially was in custody at a county jail
in Montana. At that time he was represented by Michael Donahoe of the Federal
Defenders' Office. Mr. Kaczynski describes forming a quick and close relationship
with Mr. Donahoe (REDACTED). He identifies that throughout the several months
he was held in Montana, he received a variety of letters through his attorney from
private attorneys indicating an interest in representing him. He reports that Mr.
Donahoe sorted through these letters and brought him a letter from Tony Serra to his
attention, as one he might look as seriously. After reviewing the letter, Mr.
Kaczynski determined that he would continue to utilize Mr. Donahoe. He believed
that Donahoe would continue with his case even after he was moved to Sacramento.
As the time approached for that move, Mr. Donahoe told him that he would not be
continuing with his case. This precipitated an angry response from Mr. Kaczynski,
although he claims that he was able to modify that the next day.
Upon arrival in Sacramento, Mr. Kaczynski was assigned to the team of Federal
Defenders currently working on his case. He describes developing a close personal
relationship with his defense team including the investigators and paralegals. He
describes them as taking the place of his family. He indicates that his friendship with
his attorneys has been excellent, but he has serious conflicts with them about his
case. He is able to name the members of his defense team and identify them by sight.
He indicates that someone from the team visits him once every few days and
someone from the office sees him daily except weekends. Members of the team take
messages to and from him.
Mr. Kaczynski indicates that early on he identified that he did not want to use a
mental health defense in his case. He describes that nonetheless the question of
psychiatric evaluation arose early in his period of detention. He did not like the idea
of talking to a psychiatrist because he believes that "science has no business probing
the workings of the human mind." Early on, he reluctantly agreed to some psychiatric
and psychological evaluation by defense experts because he believed by taking
neuropsychological tests he could prove that he was not mentally ill. He also
indicates his belief that information obtained from those evaluations would remain an
attorney/client work product and would not be released.
He believes that the question of competency to stand trial in his case arose because of
his suicide attempt and because he expressed the conflicts he is having with his
attorneys. His recent upset stemmed from his belief that he had been deceived by his
attorneys in that declarations from their experts had been made available to the
Mr. Kaczynski waited several weeks before submitting his letters (three) to Judge
Burrell and indicates he did so in order to await completion of negotiations between
the prosecution and defense, which could have resulted in the lack of necessity for a
trial. He submitted the letters after the negotiations fell through. In these letters he
also expressed his belief that his attorneys had originally promised to help him
pursue "certain personal concerns of my own, even if these were inconsistent with
my attorneys' professional concerns to do what is in my best interest in a legal sense.
In particular I was led to believe that I would not be portrayed as mentally ill without
my consent." Through the use of a conflict resolution attorney, Mr. Clymos, these
issues appeared to be resolved in the eyes of the attorneys and the Court. On
01/05/98, at the beginning of the first day of the trial, Mr. Kaczynski provided
information to Judge Burrell indicating that he needed to talk to him about a serious
matter. He stated, "Your Honor before these proceedings begin, I would like to
revisit the issue of my relations with my attorneys. It's very important, I haven't stood
up because I'm under orders from the Marshals not to stand up." An ex parte and en
camera discussion was held, wherein Mr. Kaczynski was able to identify that he did
not want what followed in the discussion to constitute a waiver of any part of his
attorney/client privilege. He provided the judge with his written account of his
history of his relationship with attorney Tony Serra. He indicated his perception that
again his attorneys had been less than honest with him. He referenced the earlier
dispute with his attorneys which he claimed arose from the fact they had deceived
him, and asked the Court to contact Mr. Serra to determine whether he was willing to
represent him. Mr. Kaczynski presented the position that if his information was not
accurate, he would apologize to his attorneys, but if it was correct then the
conclusion would be inescapable that his attorneys have continued to deal with him
in an underhanded fashion and in that case he could not cooperate with them because
he could not rely on the truth of what they told him.
In the 01/07/98 hearing, continued discussion took place and Mr. Kaczynski
indicated that he was willing to permit his attorneys to go ahead with the mental
health defense in the sentencing phase because that was the best agreement he could
get and he did not want to break up the defense team. He was going to defend
himself with what was essentially "a symbolic victory" by eliminating the mental
health defense in the guilt/innocence phase of the trial. During extended discussion at
that hearing Mr. Kaczynski first indicated his intent to proceed with present counsel,
even though he disagreed with the defense in the guilt/penalty phase. At the end of
the hearing he expressed his wish to consult with Mr. Serra about representation.
On 01/08/98 Defense Attorney Clarke addressed the Court indicating that Mr.
Kaczynski was making a request that he be permitted to proceed in the case as his
own counsel. He expressed that it was a difficult decision but believed he had no
choice but to go forward as his own attorney. Ms. Clarke indicated this was a very
"heart felt reaction to the presentation of the mental illness defense, a situation which
he simply cannot endure, so it is requested the Court permit him to proceed on his
own behalf." Mr. Kaczynski did not request a delay in the trial and indicated that he
would go forward on his own behalf as soon as the jury was sworn. After extended
discussion regarding several issues of law, the Court determined that a competency
evaluation should be conducted to assist in determining Mr. Kaczynski's competency
to stand trial and represent himself. The defense indicated their position that he not
only was wishing to refuse to allow them to present a mental illness defense at the
penalty phase of the trial, but it was their impression that he could not bear for them
to present that defense. Mr. Kaczynski voiced his opinion that he objected to having
a competency evaluation because it was his position that he was competent. The
Court subsequently indicated that it would proceed with ordering the evaluation and
did.
In discussion with Mr. Kaczynski about the issue of jury selection, he expressed a
clear understanding of the selection process and indicated that he had provided his
comments and review to his appointed counsel. He expressed his understanding of
how the jury in his case had been selected and was able to discuss the pros and cons
of the jury process in resolution of a legal proceeding. He expressed his preference to
have a trial by jury even a situation where he would have the option to be tried by the
judge. He also expressed his understanding that in a trial involving a potential death
penalty, that the trial would have to proceed with a jury.
In specific discussion with Mr. Kaczynski around the issue of competency to stand
trial, he was able to clearly articulate the problems in his relationship with defense
attorneys in regard to choosing a defense in his case. He expressed an understanding
why psychiatric issues, including a psychiatric evaluation, might arise in his case, by
again noting his history of psychological verbal abuse beginning in adolescence that
had continued as an issue for decades. He indicated that his mother and brother, in
their interviews with the media, had portrayed him as mentally ill in an effort to
cover up the history of abuse in his family. He believed that his attorneys portraying
him as mentally ill would indicate they were helping his brother, an individual
against whom he was experiencing considerable anger. He also indicated that his
attorneys had used deception to get him to see the psychiatrist and psychologist
defense experts. He indicated his own goal of refuting the image the family had
portrayed of him since his arrest.
Mr. Kaczynski further indicated that he was aware of these potential conflicts with
his attorneys much earlier but had focused with the defense team on the motion to
suppress evidence during the first several months of 1997, knowing that should that
be successful, the issue of mental illness would not need to be pursued. At present he
indicates that he was not claiming that he was free of any psychiatric disorder and he
would not object to the issue of a psychiatric disorder being raised; what he was
concerned about was that the information would not be portrayed accurately and
some of the facts that had been presented in declarations were already incorrect. He
felt his statements had been taken out of context to make him sound paranoid. It was
also his belief that his attorneys, in their wish to win the case and try for minimum
penalty, were adamant about presenting a mental illness defense. He indicated his
own goals were to also receive the least penalty possible and to be acquitted if
possible, but he could only pursue this goal through something like a mental illness
defense if he had an 80% chance of succeeding and being released. He indicated if
that was the case, he would concede to a mental illness defense but it would be by his
choice. He did not view himself as having an 80% chance of success. At present he
felt his attorneys were forcing that defense upon him. He expressed a clear
understanding of the 12.2(b) defense as not being an insanity defense and clearly
articulated an understanding of the statute as allowing use of information regarding
mental disease and defect bearing on the issue or guilt.
Mr. Kaczynski was able to explain a clear understanding of the insanity defense and
was aware that his attorneys would require his permission to give notice of that
defense. He claimed an ability to consider the use of the insanity defense, qualifying
it by stating he would only consider that if he had a reasonable belief that in a short
period of time (five years) he could be released. It was his impression, however, that
if found to be insane he would spend his life in a prison hospital facility, an outcome
he was unwilling to accept. He expressed a preference for death over life in prison,
but at the same time denied having an interest in being put to death.
Mr. Kaczynski is also aware that his attorneys are capable and are perceived by the
judge and prosecution as being such. He regretted his initial statement to the judge
that he would not represent himself and felt that post his unsuccessful suicide attempt
and a period of time to rethink the issue, he now had the energy to commit to
attempting to represent himself adequately. He had no doubt that his skills would fall
short of those of his present attorneys, but expressed his firm belief that although he
could elect to use a mental illness defense, he was choosing not to do so. He realized
his chance at success of being acquitted were slim, but felt that he could vindicate
himself by saying he was not crazy in court. In that way, he felt he would only have
one strike against him instead of two. He was able to compare the impact of having
the prosecution present him as mean and dangerous versus the presentation by the
defense of him being mentally ill and less than capable. He believed that the jury
would somewhat discount the prosecution's presentation, as it was to be expected, but
the mental illness presentation was potentially far more damaging to him personally.
During extended discussions, Mr. Kaczynski did indicate his belief that his attorneys
were conventional and "part of the system." He imagined that Mr. Serra, who had
been portrayed as much more of a rebel probably had views that were more against
the system and had more in common with him. (REDACTED) he persisted
throughout the evaluation period in expressing interest in exploring representation by
Mr. Serra as a possibility. At the same time he realized that it was late in the trial
process to change attorneys, and that the Court was not willing to appoint new
counsel at this time. It was his perception that it would take Mr. Serra numerous
months to prepare for trial. He also expressed his wish to resolve his legal situation in
a prompt manner. He viewed his choices as self-representation or continuing with his
current attorneys. He indicated he could not do the latter if they were able to proceed
with a 12.2(b) defense over his objection.
Mr. Kaczynski was able to outline other conflicts he had with his attorneys, including
the issue of publicity. He had been interested in writing letters to counter the image
being presented by his family of him in the media. He discussed this with his
attorneys and although he felt some pressure to conform, he had agreed with them
not to write letters to the media and draw additional public attention to him at this
point in the trial process. Nonetheless he spent approximately four months preparing
a rebuttal to all he perceived as inaccurate in the public portrayal of him, and focused
Discussion with Mr. Kaczynski about his case revealed that he has an accurate
understanding of the charges against him and the possible penalties if convicted. He
explained the role of various participants in the legal process in some detail. This
included the role of the judge, jury, prosecutor, and defense attorney. He expressed a
full understanding of the plea bargaining process. He reviewed his own capabilities
for self-representation and indicated that he had debated one of his attorneys in a
hearing situation and felt he had bested him. He also claimed he had some teaching
experience to fall back on in addressing the jury. He admitted his own perception that
he would not do as well handling things extemporaneously as he could if he had time
to prepare his responses. He expressed an understanding of the evidence available in
his case. After much consideration he was able to respond to the question of what
image he wished to present of himself during the trial. Initially he had only been able
to protest against the image to be portrayed by the defense attorneys. It took him
some time to be able to determine that he wanted to present himself as rational; a
person having a valid point to make; a decent person who felt cornered; as socially
vulnerable; in some ways a victim personally and via v the system; an individual who
had his back against the wall; a person who lived a beautiful way of life in the woods
and a person whose psychiatric disorder could serve as a mitigating factor. When
questioned as to how this image differed from that potentially planned to be
presented by the defense attorneys, he was unable to articulate a difference, but
focused on his concern that his attorneys would not accurately present the facts. In
essence, he wanted to present his slant on the factual information. This appeared
consistent with his voluminous writing, wherein he attempts to dispute the
descriptions and "facts" of the information provided by the media and his family. He
was able to understand that his plan in presenting the image outlined above would
require use of the 12.2(b) defense at least at the penalty phase, if that was reached.
Mr. Kaczynski completed four psychological tests during the week of this evaluation,
including the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 and Millon Clinical
Multiaxial Inventory-2 on 01/12/98, Beck Depression Inventory and the Draw a
Person Picking an Apple From a Tree Test on 01/15/98.
People who respond in similar ways on the clinical scale 0 (elevated in his profile
with score of 74) are often described as introverted, shy, and socially insecure. They
are uncomfortable with others and may avoid people, even at times when they could
be helpful to him. They are likely to dislike and avoid social activities, and will
actively keep others at a distance. They are described by others as cold and distant,
and are unlikely to express their feelings directly. Despite their avoidance of others,
they are very sensitive to what people think of them and may be troubled by the lack
of relationships. Such people tend to worry and feel anxious, possibly with episodes
of depression. They tend to have rigid and inflexible attitudes, becoming irritable
when questioned or confronted.
People with the 4-6 two point code pattern (as evident in Mr. Kaczynski's profile
with Scale 4=69, Scale 6=68) are described as viewing the world as threatening and
feeling misunderstood or mistreated by others. Such people can be hostile, irritable,
and demanding. They are commonly very self-centered and are not concerned about
the rights of others. Indeed, they are often resentful of the success of other people
and suspicious of their motives. In addition, these people can be impulsive and
manipulative, frequently getting into conflict with family and authorities. They often
have unstable family lives, personal relationships, poor work and educational
histories, and legal problems. This profile is associated with stable characteristics and
such people are very resistant to treatment interventions. They often deny that they
have problems and are evasive about discussing them, sometimes refusing to talk
about personal shortcomings at all. They avoid close relationships and have trouble
getting along with those people with whom they do come in contact, including family
members. Such people have vague goals and are indecisive about many aspects of
their lives.
Similar to the MMPI-2, Mr. Kaczynski's responses to the Millon Clinical Multiaxial
Inventory, Second Edition might be described as forthright and self-revealing. His
pattern of item endorsement does not suggest overt attempts to exaggerate nor
minimize psychological problems, and to the contrary appears to reflect a balance
between self-protective and potentially self-effacing responses. The resulting clinical
scale profile is viewed as a useful indication of his current personality functioning.
Modest elevations are present on clinical scales: Schizoid (l)=73; Avoidant (2)=71;
Sadistic Aggressive (6B)=78. Persons with similar test results typically exhibit
difficulties primarily characterized by hostile alienation. These persons often espouse
overt disregard for or anger at significant others and other people in general. They
may avow few or no attachments to others and deny experiences of either positive
sentiments or feelings of guilt or shame. They relate to others primarily through
threats or hostile posturing or overt aggression, but may prefer outright avoidance of
social contacts. They are often seen as dogmatic and unyielding, and may espouse
unusual social, political or religious ideas. They often view others as devalued and
unimportant and may act in ways that others see as cold, unfeeling, or callous.
Formal disorder in the flow and form of thought is not generally associated with this
pattern of results, and marked sensory disturbances are not typically noted.
The Draw a Person Picking an Apple from the Tree test was used to obtain a snap
shot of Mr. Kaczynski's functioning at the time of the interview. He showed no
evidence of a mood disorder, obvious thought disorder, intellectual dysfunction or
organicity based on review of his drawing. He demonstrated good use of color and
space and energy; the picture was logical, and demonstrated integrity, problem
solving and realism. The drawing was highly detailed and appeared as a drawing
done by an adult. There was not evidence of perseveration or rotation in line quality,
and the drawing of the person were well developed.
The WAIS-R results were Verbal Score of 138, Performance Score of 124, and Full
Scale Score of 136. The split between Verbal and Performance IQ is large, but not
significant, in that there is no impairment in the performance score and no specific
deficits in any subtests. His scores reflect a very strong verbal ability level, with a
lower, but still above average performance ability.
The results of the WMS-R are generally consistent with the overall intelligence
testing with an exception of Visual Memory Score. This subtest is significantly lower
that the others, but is at the average level, while the others are significantly above
average. It appears that this score was low due to the effect of only one subtest,
Visual Paired Associates I. The cause of this could not be ascertained during this
evaluation period but the results do not impact significantly on the question of
competency to stand trial.
Axis II: Paranoid Personality Disorder, with Avoidant and Antisocial Features, 301.0
(Premorbid)
Axis III: Status Post Tonsillectomy; Removal of Congenital Cyst of the Upper Jaw;
Status Post Extraction of Wisdom Teeth; Status Post Fracture of Left Fifth Finger
that his dysfunction in life, particularly his inability to establish a relationship with a
female, was directly the result of extreme psychological verbal abuse by his parents.
These ideas were embraced and embellished, and day to day behaviors and
observations became incorporated into these ideas, which served to further
strengthen Mr. Kaczynski's investment in these beliefs. Preoccupation with these
issues has been an ongoing factor in his ife. Review of his history suggests that his
investment in these beliefs has varied somewhat over time, but there has been no
period in the last 30 years in where he has shown a period of complete remission.
Consistent with this diagnosis, for a significant portion of time since the onset of his
illness, Mr. Kaczynski has shown marked social and occupational dysfunction in the
areas of work, interpersonal relations, and possibly at times self-care. There is no
clear evidence that this presentation is due to substance use, a general medical
condition, or a mood disorder. Mr. Kaczynski's delusions are mostly persecutory in
nature. The central themes involve his belief that he is being maligned and harassed
by family members and modern society. Consistent with other individuals with
persecutory types of delusions, he is resentful and angry, and fantasizes and actually
does resort to violence against those individuals and organizations that he believes
are hurting him. Mr. Kaczynski experiences ideas of reference, with his interpretation
of these events being consistent with the persecutory nature of his delusional ideas.
There is some indication that he may have also experienced erotomanic delusions.
Although this issue has not been fully explored, it is evident that he has repeatedly
developed idealized romantic attachments to women with whom he has little
familiarity or contact. These women, for the most part, are unaware of the degree of
his attachment. That he has maintained these idealized attachment over extended
periods of time, is outlined extensively in his writings.
It appears that the onset of this disorder for Mr. Kaczynski was in his early 20s. It is
likely that for many years he has intermittently experienced exacerbations in the
intensity of this disorder. Those periods have been preceded by prodromal symptoms
of depressed mood, insomnia, increased distractibility, and intensification of sexual
identity problems.
This diagnosis is given on a provisional basis because of the limited duration of the
diagnostic evaluation period and the fact that it would be useful to thoroughly review
behavior and clinical symptomatology around those periods in Mr. Kaczynski's life
that are closely associated with his charged criminal behavior.
In addition to meeting the criteria for Paranoid Personality Disorder, Mr. Kaczynski
also has features of two other personality disorder types. Support for Avoidant
Personality Disorder Traits includes that he has demonstrated a pervasive pattern of
social inhibition, feelings of inadequacy and hypersensitivity to negative evaluations,
beginning in his early life. Consistent with this, he has shown restraint within
intimate relationships because of his fear of being shamed or ridiculed; he has been
preoccupied with being criticized or rejected in social situations; and is inhibited in
new interpersonal situations because of feelings of inadequacy. Consistent with
Antisocial Personality Disorder Traits is his pervasive pattern of disregard for and
violation of the rights of others. This includes his failure to conform to social norms
with respect to lawful behaviors, as indicated by repeatedly performing acts that are
grounds for arrest. This description is based on his own account of his behavior in his
writings and interviews. Also consistent with his Antisocial Personality Traits is the
characteristic of deceitfulness, as indicated by his persistent and elaborate efforts to
conceal his behaviors. He has demonstrated a reckless regard for the safety of others.
He demonstrates a lack of remorse as indicated in his writings by being indifferent to
having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from others. Mr. Kaczynski falls short of carrying a
diagnosis of Antisocial Personality Disorder in that he does not have evidence of a
conduct disorder before the age of 15.
Mr. Kaczynski's medical history is not viewed as clinically significant at this time.
Mr. Kaczynski appears to have experienced the onset of his illness in the summer
and fall of 1966, while involved in graduate studies at the University of Michigan.
He describes anxiety, depressive symptoms, and sexual confusion, culminating in
crystallization of a belief system involving his ideas about the negative impacts of
modern technology. He described that prior to that point in time, which occurred on
the day of his visit to a psychiatrist at the University Health Center, he had chronic
and nagging suspicions that he was suffering from a mental illness and that the
problems he experienced were internally generated rather than a product of his
environment. At that "turning point11 as he describes it, he completely abandoned
that idea and projected the cause of his problems onto the environment and his
family. That he spent considerable time collecting support for his views, is evident
by review of his writings.
As outlined in detail in the body of this report, Mr. Kaczynski demonstrates marked
ambivalence, some blunting of affect and inappropriate affect, and some difficulty
integrating social information. Psychological testing performed during this
evaluation does not show evidence of overt disorganization or psychotic
symptomatology at this time. It is possible that the structure and socialization with
people that Mr. Kaczynski has experienced since his arrest, have been therapeutic for
his psychological functioning. It is also possible the duration of and adaptation to his
symptoms play a role. The testing is consistent with an individual with superior
intelligence, who has experienced a psychotic level of dysfunction, but is currently
continuing to demonstrate the more consistent traits associated with paranoia,
antisocial and avoidant behavior. The prognosis for change in Mr. Kaczynski's
behavior is guarded, in that his symptom picture has been present for an extended
period of time and treatment for people demonstrating his type of personality
dysfunction is difficult. He has never actively been treated in an effort to modify his
symptom picture and treatability cannot be ruled out. Treatment efforts, given his
diagnostic picture, would include a combination of medication and supportive
psychological intervention. He might also benefit from practical interventions in the
areas of socialization.
In regard to the issue of competency to stand trial, it is my opinion that at the present
time, despite the presence of significant mental illness historically and residual
evidence of such problems at the present, Mr. Kaczynski is able to understand the
nature and consequences of the proceedings against, and is able to assist his attorneys
in his defense. Thus, I view him as competent to stand trial. Extensive interviewing
around the issue of competence to stand trial in conjunction with the diagnostic
assessment and review of extensive collateral material, support that Mr. Kaczynski
does have an excellent factual understanding of the legal proceedings against and has
an adequate rational understanding of these proceedings. He does have the ability to
assist his attorneys in his own defense and the capacity to choose whether he will opt
to assist them in presenting his defense. Mr. Kaczynski does describe goals for the
trial process that might be viewed as somewhat inconsistent with maximizing the
potential success of a defense to support his plea in innocence. It appears, however,
that his motivation for his decision making in regard to his legal situation is not
primarily his wish to clear his name and set the record straight about his family. His
decision making, instead, appears to take into consideration a realistic review of the
probability of various outcomes in his case, and supports his lack of interest in
spending his life in prison as an alternative to being put to death if found guilty.
As described in detail above, Mr. Kaczynski has superior intelligence; he has the
ability to read and interpret complex writing; he can contribute to review of
documents; he has a full understanding of the roles of the various court personnel; he
understands the charges against him and potential penalties if found guilty; he
appreciates the nature of the proceedings and understands the likely sequence of
events in a trial. Mr. Kaczynski has formed an unusual relationship with his defense
team, in that he has quickly come to regard them as "friends and family." In some
ways he has idealized his relationship with them, and at times can as easily devalue
the relationship with individual members of the team. Nonetheless, he retains an
awareness that they are a skilled group of individuals, who have provided him with
good legal advice and maneuvering to date. He recognizes that continuing to utilize
them in his defense would provide him with a higher level of representation than
self-representation. He continues to wish to make the crucial decisions in his case,
even if they could lead to less likelihood of a more lenient outcome.
Through the review of en camera proceedings, it was evident that Mr. Kaczynski was
able to track the rather complicated discussion regarding legal issues in an area where
the law was unclear. He supplied information and opinions at appropriate times, and
was able to contain his verbalizations appropriately within that setting. Although his
ambivalence about the future course of action was evident, he was able to
demonstrate the capacity to arrive at a decision from available material. There was
not evidence that his behavior became disruptive or aggressive during these stressful
proceedings.
The opinion that Mr. Kaczynski is competent to stand trial despite the diagnoses that
have been rendered, does take into consideration that at present, he is not
demonstrating significant overt psychotic symptomatology. There is clearly evidence
of residual delusional ideas. Upon extensive interviewing throughout this evaluation,
Mr. Kaczynski has been able to challenge his beliefs to some degree and to consider
alternative explanations for some of his claimed beliefs. This is not to say he has
It is likely that Mr. Kaczynski will present some challenges during the trial process,
regardless of whether he is represented by counsel or proceeds pro se. He will
continue to focus on detail and be reluctant to separate out useful detail from
unnecessary detail. He will continue to demonstrate his ambivalence and
suspiciousness, and is likely to over value some information that may arise. His
interactions regarding the possibility of resolving his current conflicts by acquiring
new representation is an example of this issue. He does not have much insight into
the fact that acquiring new representation will not necessarily resolve the types of
conflicts he currently has with this defense team, who remain his main support
system at this time.
In regard to Mr. Kaczynski's recent suicide attempt, it is not my impression that the
attempt resulted from significant depression. Instead it appeared to be a considered
action in response to a difficult situation. He will remain at risk of choosing suicide
as an option throughout the remainder of the legal proceedings. It is unlikely that his
will share his ideas on this subject with anyone. He has expressed his belief that he
sees no disadvantage to death over life in prison. Should he be convicted and
incarcerated, his risk of suicide would, in all likelihood, be a chronic issue. Those
interacting with him should also be aware that he tends to form rapid attachments and
over value relationships. It is important to be very clear with him what the purpose
and intent of your interactions are with him, and for individuals to clearly define their
roles in those interactions.
SCJ/dmd