Mental Illness, The Killer Essay, Research Paper

& # 8220 ; Mental unwellness: The Cause of Violence? & # 8221 ;

& # 8220 ; The first thing that hit me was I could smell blood. And looked, and quiet, but saw a batch of childs down, a batch of lesions, blood spirting out of legs ( & # 8221 ; The Killer & # 8221 ; ) . & # 8221 ; This is what Don Stone, a football manager at Thurston High School, said as he approached the Cafeteria. Kip Kinkel, a fifteen-year-old pupil at the high school, had merely murdered four people two pupils and wounded 25, and both his parents. This large incident had happened in a little quiet town in Oregon. After Kip Kinkel had been arrested for the slayings and shots he was taken to the Police office for an question. There Kip for the first clip verbally told person about & # 8220 ; the voices & # 8221 ; in his caput. What caused this adolescent to perpetrate such a awful act? Could this incident be caused by a mentally sick adolescent?

Kip Kinkel was like a bomb ready to detonate. A batch was dug deep interior of him ; he was a really down male child. He had gone to see head-shrinkers on the petition of his female parent, because she was concerned with his & # 8220 ; anti-social & # 8221 ; behaviour. Later Kip had started to take Prozac to acquire over his depression. As clip had gone on Kip had seemed to acquire over his depression. He was subsequently taken of the Prozac

After the incident at Thurston High School, there had been a few psychologists who had tried to name him. Dr. Orin Bolstad, one of the head-shrinkers who had been interviewed for the defence, stated that Kip suffered from a psychotic upset with major paranoiac symptoms, potentially some signifier of early oncoming schizophrenic disorder. Other trials, Bolstad said, revealed a really down, anomic kid who sees grownups as unjust, arbitrary and untrusty. He has really low self-pride, and is manipulative and paranoid ( Expert 1 ) .

Kip reported audile hallucinations. They began, harmonizing to Kip, in 6th class. Kip told him that he remembered the first clip he heard a voice ; it said, & # 8220 ; You are a stupid piece of crap. You aren & # 8217 ; t worth anything. & # 8221 ; They scared and upset him, he said, and he tried assorted things to hush them: biking, watching Television, and pluging his caput. Harmonizing to Bolstad, Kip said that he ne’er told anyone about the voices because he was embarrassed ( Expert 1 ) . Dr. Richard J. Konkol, paediatric brain doctor, besides testified for the defence. He showed an image of a computerized scan of Kip & # 8217 ; s encephalon that he said showed & # 8220 ; holes & # 8221 ; in countries of the encephalon. These images revealed decreased blood flow to the frontal lobe, the country associated with emotional control and decision-making. He testified that this decreased encephalon activity was consistent with new research on kids who become schizophrenic, and that he thought it could do Kip

more susceptible to a psychotic episode ( ’Psychological” ) .

There was much grounds to demo that Kip is a mentally sick instance. Harmonizing to Dr. William Sack, there was much grounds to demo that Kip was a mentally sick individual. Kip was driven to kill by these audile hallucinations: & # 8220 ; I feel his offenses and his behaviour over those two yearss are the direct consequence of a psychotic merchandise that was constructing over three old ages that all of a sudden emerged, taking over his self-importance. ( & # 8221 ; Psychological & # 8221 ; ) . & # 8221 ;

Bolstad believed that Kip murdered his parents and opened fired on chap

pupils the following twenty-four hours ( killing two and wounding 25 ) under the influence of these hallucinatory voices. He described Kip telling the voices to him: & # 8220 ; & # 8216 ; My Dad was sitting at the saloon [ in the kitchen ] . The voices said, & # 8220 ; Shoot him. & # 8221 ; I had no pick. The voices said I had no pick. and subsequently, after he killed his female parent, & # 8216 ; The voices said, & # 8216 ; Go to school and kill everybody. Look what you & # 8217 ; ve already done & # 8217 ; ( Expert 1 ) . & # 8221 ;

Looking at the ratings the head-shrinkers have made it is obvious that Kip was a instance of being mentally ill. Bolstad said that he did non believe that there was any manner to bring around Kip & # 8217 ; s upset, but that it could be managed with medicine: & # 8220 ; I would non desire to see Kip Kinkel out on the streets, of all time, with this status & # 8230 ; without medical specialty and without an atrocious batch of construction and support services arranged for him ( Expert 2 ) .

I believe that when a parents realize that their kid seems to be detached to an utmost point, there is should be a sense of concern. Parents every bit good as instructors and friends should take a close expression to what is traveling on in the life of the individual. The neuro-psychologist looked at Kips encephalon, and realized that there was non plenty blood flow. Person should hold done this before to see if there might be something incorrect. This is something that showed that Kip might be enduring from schizophrenic disorder. The whole incident might non hold happened. I believe that a through analysis should be done on a individual if they are enduring from clinical depression. This can, in the hereafter, assist the patient out. There might non be as many effusions of force. Many may be able to be protected every bit good.

Plants Cited

& # 8220 ; An Experts Opinion. Frontline: The Killer at Thurston High. & # 8221 ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/kinkel/trial/ # 4.12 December 2000. 11 November 2000.

& # 8220 ; A Psychological/Medical Testimony. Frontline: The Killer at Thurston High. & # 8221 ; hypertext transfer protocol: //www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/kinkel/etc/opb.html. 12 December 1999. 11 November 2000.

The Killer at Thurston High. Produced by Michael Kirk, Miri Navasky, Karen O & # 8217 ; Connor. PBS Video, 18 January 2000, 90 proceedingss.