Providentia

Is "Brain Disease" A Useful Term For Mental Illness?

A recent paper published in Schizoprenia Bulletin questions both the scientific evidence and potential effect of the current trend to change the language used to describe certain serious mental illnesses (schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar affective disorder) to "brain diseases." It is argued that changing nomenclature will not be effective in reducing stigma unless the treatment and financial circumstances of the seriously mentally ill are improved. Finally, it is suggested that we need to expand our understanding and treatment of "physical illnesses" to encompass the social and psychological dimensions, not narrow our view of psychiatric illnesses.

For the abstract.

Suicide and the New DSM

The revision process for the new version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) has generated fierce controversy in many circles.  One of the main complaints  raised is the lack of transparency in the process by which new diagnostic concepts are generated.  In a recent editorial in  Crisis: the Journal of Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention, Editor-in-Chief Diego De Leo discussed his own  concerns relating to proposed DSM-V changes relating to suicidal behaviour.  While self-harm is already included in the DSM-IV-TR as a symptom of various mood and personality disorders, the proposed changes involve creating several new diagnoses including "suicidal ideation and behavior" and "non-suicidal self-injury".  A related diagnosis which had been considered for inclusion, "prolonged grief disorder", has been shelved although "bereavement-related disorder" has been proposed in its place. 

While the way in which suicide is perceived by mental health professionals has changed extensively over time and across cultures, the current trend towards medicalization of suicide seems virtually complete with the new DSM.   In his editorial, Professor De Leo argued that directly assigning a psychiatric diagnosis to suicidal behaviour represents a step backwards from current multi-disciplinary approaches to dealing with suicide. Making suicidal behaviour a DSM-V diagnosis also means shutting out non-mental health professionals who are considered unqualified to make DSM diagnoses which could complicate prevention and treatment.  He also points out that slogans such as "Suicide is Everybody's Business"  which have been embraced by international suicide prevention organizations would argue against making suicide exclusively a mental health issue.   

In countries such as China and India, suicide is far less likely to be linked to psychiatric conditions than in Western countries.   In cases of suicide among the elderly, psychological autopsy studies have shown relatively low incidence of psychiatric illness.   Although suicidologists Ron Maris and Mort Silverman successfully argued fifteen years ago that "...suicide is, by definition, not a disease, but a death that is caused by a self-inflicted intentional action or behavior", the new DSM-V diagnosis process would automatically make suicide a mental disorder regardless of the actual motivation involved.  While any countries have decriminalized suicide, redefining it as a mental disorder would have far-reaching implications into laws regarding the mandatory reporting of suicide attempts and how they are treated by health professionals. 

A more profound change being considered in the new DSM is the proposed classification of "non-suicidal self-injury" (NSSI) which would distinguish between deliberate suicide attempts and engaging in self-harm behaviour without intending to commit suicide.   Previous versions of the DSM already include non-suicidal self-harm as a sign of Borderline Personality Disorder, which DeLeo's editorial criticises for being too broad a diagnostic label.  De Leo also argues that the proposed NSSI category might well be a cure worse than the disease. 

There can be many reasons for attempting suicide and differing degrees of suicide intent.  Placing "suicidal ideation behaviour" and NSSI into the DSM would limit treatment and diagnosis for suicide attempters by making suicide intention into a "yes/no" dichotomy which often fails to reflect the true extent of the underlying motivation involved.  Could the question of whether a self-harm action was intentionally suicidal or non-suicidal even be answered properly?  In many cases, the suicide attempter may not even be certain whether the attempt was deliberate or not (as I've observed myself in many cases).   In one study described by DeLeo, an Australian community study showed that almost 50 per cent of self-harmers reporting having suicidal ideation, far more than same-age counterparts who did not self-injure, even when the self-harm attempts were not driven by a desire to die.  Other studies of self-harmers showed that only a small percentage actually sought medical help for self-harm attempts (self-cutters were even less likely to seek help) despite being at a signficantly higher risk of death than other suicide attempters.  

Previous versions of the DSM have shown a tendency to inflate the number of people diagnosed as new diagnostic labels are introduced.  The inclusion of suicide attempts as a diagnostic criterion of borderline personality disorder despite limited evidence to support the link led to an increased stigmatization of suicide attempters.  Will assigning a diagnosis of NSSI lead to further stigmatization that might prevent suicide attempts and self-harmers from seeking help until it is too late?  This is an especially troubling question given the alarming rise in suicide attempts among adolescents (lifetime incidence of self-injury among adolescents can be as high as 14% according to some estimates).  

In concluding his editorial, Professor De Leo points out that there is still too much that isn't known about suicide to justify the potential risks involved with the two proposed suicide diagnoses.  Since suicide is often a complex process that can be shaped by a range of internal and external factors, including cultural, legal, and economic aspects, directly placing "suicidal ideation and behavior" and "non-suicidal self-injury" in the new DSM may well do more harm than good.  In his own concluding words, "As a researcher, a clinician, and a caring human being, I believe we are not ready. Not yet."

For the abstract.

Is There A Neuroscience of Human Evil?

An article published by Martin Reimann and Philip Zimbardo in a recent issue of the Journal of Neuroscience, Psychology, and Economics asks a very provocative question, what are the neurological mechanisms underlying human evil?   For several decades, researchers in personality and social psychology have focused on the role that deindividuation and dehumanization play in many of those acts which we consider to be evil.  Deindividuation in social psychology literature refers to the diminishing of one's sense of individuality that occurs with behavior disjointed from personal or social standards of conduct, i.e. how being part of a mob resuls in a greater tendency towards violent behaviour.    Dehumanization, on the other hand, deals with the tendency to blur our perception of others as having any resemblance to us, thus depriving them of those basic human rights to which we might otherwise feel they are entitled to possess.   Dehumanization is a common justification in genocidal or terror campaigns and often lies as the central facet of most war crimes.  In their current paper, Reimain and Zimbardo suggest that neuroscience research might contribute to our understanding of human evil.  Integrating theories of personality and social psychology as well as the notions of deindividuation and dehumanization with recent neuroscientific insight, the authors elaborate on the nature of human evil and its potential roots in brain systems associated with affective processing and cognitive control.    Drawing on examples from the neuroscience literature, including the case of Phineas Gage, the authors propose that a relationship can be made between frontal lobe pathology and aggressive behaviour and also implicate additional brain structures including the temporal lobe and various subcortical structures.    Although available research linking deindividuation and dehumanization is lacking, Reimann and Zimbardo suggest that disparate themes from social psychology and neuroanatomy can be linked to form a viable neuroscience of human evil and make recommendations for future research.

For the abstract.

Sexual Orientation Conversion Therapy in Hong Kong

Despite international pressure from human rights groups, the Hong Kong government is continuing its involvement with New Creation Ministries and Dr. Hong Kwai Wah, who is described as "psychiatrist in private practice with a specialty in treating unwanted homosexuality".    In a move that activitists have called the first government-sponsored training program on gay conversion therapy, a workshop for the city's Social Welfare Department was held in June of this year.  In the workshop, Dr. Hong described the mission of New Creation Ministries which allowed people struggling with homosexuality  "diffuse their inner dilemmas, rewire their mental state as well as propagate the belief that homosexuals can change".   Among the conversion therapy treatment methods that New Creation Ministries uses are: prayer, cold showers to suppress sexual desire, and enforced abstinence to avoid same-sex relationships.  Affiliated with international "ex-gay" advocacy group, Exodus Global Alliance,  Dr. Hong and New Creation Ministries maintain that their organization differs from other counseling organization which "tend to encourage homosexuals to accept their sexual orientation". 

Long a bastion of conservatism relating to sexual minorities, Hong Kong only decriminalized homosexuality in 1991.   Following a government survey in the 1990s which showed that the Hong Kong population was "not ready" for further legislation to protect homosexuals, little progress in human rights protections have been made since that time.   Although the Social Work Department has previously conducted workshops on sexual identity issues, the New Creation Ministries workshop has outraged local and international gay rights groups. 

Along with online petitions from Truth Wins Out and other international organizations, local gay rights groups issued a press release accusing the Social Welfare Department of violating professional guidelines including the Code of Conduct by Medical Council and the Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders.  While a representative of  the Social Work Department has denied that the workshop had anything to do with sexual orientation conversion,  they have also refused to publicize details of the seminar although LGBT activists have managed to obtain collect documents showing that the seminar is based on a "sick-model" approach to homosexuality designed to convince attendees that homosexuality was "curable"as well as being linked to HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.  These documents have since been published on a newly-established "WikiGayLeaks" webpage which showed the active role that the Social Welfare Department played by inviting New Creation Ministries to establish the seminar.   A local right-wing Christian group, TruthLight, has defended the workshop and accused local activists of overreacting to its content.   The group has accused local LGBT groups of being "overly vocal" and that those homosexuals wishing ot change their sexual orientation were the true victims. 

While homosexuality was formally dropped as a mental disorder in 1973, sexual orientation conversion therapy continues to be advocated by organizations such as Exodus Outreach International.   Despite  representing themselves as a "non-profit corporation existing exclusively for charitable, educational and scientific purposes", Exodus Outreach has been implicated in anti-gay initiatives worldwide including draconian legislation recently passed in several African countries as well as workshops led by affilitated groups such as New Creation Ministries.  Only time will tell whether the recent Hong Kong workshop represents a disturbing new trend for the future.

For more information.

 

 

How Stable is Personality Across Your Lifetime?

Does personality change across the entire life course, and are those changes due to intrinsic maturation or major life experiences? A longitudinal study published in a recent issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology investigated changes in the mean levels and rank order of the Big Five personality traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism)  in a heterogeneous sample of 14,718 Germans across all of adulthood. Latent change and latent moderated regression models provided 4 main findings: First, age had a complex curvilinear influence on mean levels of personality. Second, the rank-order stability of Emotional Stability, Extraversion, Openness, and Agreeableness all followed an inverted U-shaped function, reaching a peak between the ages of 40 and 60 and decreasing afterward, whereas Conscientiousness showed a continuously increasing rank-order stability across adulthood. Third, personality predicted the occurrence of several objective major life events (selection effects) and changed in reaction to experiencing these events (socialization effects), suggesting that personality can change due to factors other than intrinsic maturation. Fourth, when events were clustered according to their valence, as is commonly done, effects of the environment on changes in personality were either overlooked or overgeneralized. In sum,the research findings show that personality changes throughout the life span, but with more pronounced changes in young and old ages, and that this change is partly attributable to social demands and experiences.

For the abstract.

Fighting Child Witchcraft Persecution in Nigeria

"I am not raped anymore because people know that we have people who protect us in case of any trouble. I feel more safe and protected than before and I have people to call my own no matter what happens."

When Elizabeth was found wandering the streets in Nigeria's Akwa Iborn state,  she had already faced enormous suffering including repeated rapes and being threatened with physical violence on a regular basis.  Abandoned by her family after one relative accused her of being a witch,  learning to live in one of the specialized accommodation facilities for abandoned children like her has been a challenge although she is slowly making the transition.  Her story is hardly unique and there are far too many children like her there. 

The belief in child witchcraft is prevalent in many parts of Africa and children like Elizabeth routinely face abuse and persecution as a result.   The accusations are fuelled by widespread belief in child witchcraft as well as religious evangelism and the media influence of the Nollywood film industry with its lurid portrayals of child witches.  Despite Nigeria passing the Child Rights Act in 1993 designed to outlaw child abuse, witchcraft accusations are not prohibited under the act and there are few real protections for accused children.    As well, it is up to each individual Nigerian state to ratify all parts of the act and not all states have done so to date. 

One of the primary agencies fighting on the behalf of accused children is Stepping Stones Nigeria.  First conceived in 2003, Stepping Stones is now the most effective international child rights agencies working in the Niger Delta.  Along with the thousands of abandoned children to be found in Nigeria's streets,  Stepping Stones has specifically focused on the countless Nigerian children suffering due to witchcraft accusations and trafficking.  

As part of their mission, they have marked December 14 as an international blogging day to publicize their Prevent Abuse of Children Today (PACT).  PACT aims to bring long-term positive social change to vulnerable children in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, particularly those at risk of witchcraft accusations, abuse and trafficking.   Their theme is:   "Every child has the right to happiness" and they are asking bloggers to help spread the word. 

This post is part of a series inspired by the Prevent Abuse of Children Today (PACT) campaign, hosted by Stepping Stones Nigeria. Please add your name to the PACT petition to prevent abuse of innocent children in the Niger Delta and visit the site to find out more: www.makeapact.org

The Magnetic Doctor's Crime (Part 3)

Continued from Part 2

During the ten months that Etienne Deschamps had to wait for his new trial, he became virtually uncontrollable as a prisoner.   Given that he was openly hostile towards the prison staff and the other prisoners (he called them "criminals" and that they were unfit to associate with a fine French gentleman like himself), it was hardly surprising that he needed to be kept in a solitary cell since the other prisoners would have probably assaulted him or worse otherwise.  Deschamps also made several attempts to escape whenever he was released from his cell (not that he ever got far before the guards restrained him).   He wa soften heard to complain frequently that "I was tried in a language I did not understand, then led to a stall to be fatended, now they would like to slaughter me like a beef in the abattoirs of Paris!".    Convinced that the new trial would free him, he made plans to return to France and have them declare war on the United States over his ordeal. 

When Deschamps' second trial date approached, there was a surprising change when a judge, Alfred Roman, suddenly declared that he would represent Deschamps (which was news to everyone, including Deschamps).  Judge Roman and John McMahon, Deschamps' court-appointed defense counsel, actually argued in court who would handle the defense before Judge Robert Marr threatened them both with contempt charges.   McMahon withdrew and Judge Roman took over the defence.  Despite the change in attorney, the trial still lasted only two days.  Jules Dietsch, his daughter, and Dr. LeMonnier gave their testimony just as before and the "letters" supposedly written by Juliette were read out loud in court.  Although Judge Roman didn't deny any of the presented evidence, he argued that Juliette's chloroform death had been an accident and that his client, despite being a charlatan, was no murderer (it was probably just as well that his client couldn't understand what his lawyer was saying about him).   The prosecutor used the letters that Deschamps had planted as proof of premeditation but  it was likely the evidence that he had sexually abused Juliette that really sealed his fate.  This time, the jury was only out thirteen minutes before finding him guilty as charged.  Deschamps broke down in court since his English was good enough by then to understand the verdict without a translation.

As Etienne Deschamps awaiting his execution date, he became more bizarre than ever.  Guards observed him in his cell having extended conversations with Juliette and Jean Lafitte although witnesses were divided whether this was due to insanity or a brilliant attempt at feigning insanity to avoid execution.  Letters of protest addressed to the police and newspapers came from all over the country arguing that Deschamps was insane and that Juliette's death had been an accident.   When the execution date was set for April 14, Deschamps protested that he would be hanged alongside another prisoner who was also awaiting execution.  Being a refined French gentleman, hanging him with a "common murderer" seemed like the ultimate indignity.   The French Consul even filed a complaint to the Governor and Lieutenant Governor but the execution date remained unchanged.

On April 19th, Judge Robert H. Marr vanished without a trace while on the way to vote in a local election.  According to newspaper reports, he was last seen walking along the levee on the edge of the Mississippi River but no trace of him was ever found.   There was some speculation that he may have committed suicide due to the pressure placed on him over the Deschamps case (Judge Marr had been heard more than once muttering that the Deschamps case "would be the death of him")  although suicide was eventually ruled out.  Etienne Deschamps was elated to hear the news of Marr's disappearance since he considered the judge to be one of his chief enemies.  He even claimed that he had "arranged it with the moon" and that the coroner would be the next to die.  Whatever the connection,  the execution date came and went without Deschamps being hanged.  At the last possible moment, a telegram arrived from the Governor granting him a temporary reprieve. 

The reason for the reprieve was a report presented by a self-appointed "sanity commission" to the governor which supposedly showed that Deschamps was insane and therefore unfit for execution.  According to the volunteer physicians who wrote the report, Deschamps was a "monomaniac on the subject of hypnotism and magnetism", an opinion shared by the Attorney-General, The disappearance of Judge Marr (who was one of the three jurists sitting on the Board of Pardons) was also a factor and newspapers had a field day hinting that a sinister conspiracy was involved.   Governor Nicholls, facing complaints from both sides was as thoroughly sick of the case as everybody else by then.  He set a new execution date on May 12, 1892.   This time, Etienne Deschamps finally hanged as scheduled, loudly proclaiming his innocence and denouncing the coroner LeMonnier (whom he accused of being an assassin and of disgracing him and France).   His last words were, "Adieu.  I am innocent, LeMonnier is the criminal".    After the execution, Dr. LeMonnier performed an autopsy and examined Deschamps' brain for signs of degeneration.   The brain was perfectly normal.

Whatever the cause of Juliette Dietsch's death, there was little doubt that Etienne Deschamps was convicted due to public outrage over the sexual abuse that he had inflicted on his victim.  Whether he killed Juliette by accident or as part of a scheme to cover up his relationship with her remains a mystery.  The mystery of what happened to Judge Robert Marr was never solved either.   Just another one of New Orleans's mysteries.

Visitors to New Orleans can still see the former rooming house where Etienne Deschamps once lived and where Julied Dietsch died.  Located at 714 St. Peter Street (and ironically known as LeMonnier House considering that the good doctor had once lived there), the rooming house is now an upscale restaurant.   I ate there myself on my recent trip to New Orleans alhtough no trace remains of the murder case that once gripped the city.  

If you ever dine there, be sure to try the gumbo.  It's excellent.

 

 

 

How Useful are "Smart Pills"?

Use of prescription stimulants by normal healthy individuals to enhance cognition appears to be on the rise. Who is using these medications for cognitive enhancement, and how prevalent is this practice? Do prescription stimulants in fact enhance cognition for normal healthy people? A recent review in Psychological Bulletin examines the epidemiological and cognitive neuroscience literatures in search of answers to these questions. Epidemiological issues addressed include the prevalence of nonmedical stimulant use, user demographics, methods by which users obtain prescription stimulants, and motivations for use. Cognitive neuroscience issues addressed include the effects of prescription stimulants on learning and executive function, as well as the task and individual variables associated with these effects. Little is known about the prevalence of prescription stimulant use for cognitive enhancement outside of student populations. Among college students, estimates of use vary widely but, taken together, suggest that the practice is commonplace. The cognitive effects of stimulants on normal healthy people cannot yet be characterized definitively, despite the volume of research that has been carried out on these issues. Published evidence suggests that declarative memory can be improved by stimulants, with some evidence consistent with enhanced consolidation of memories. Effects on the executive functions of working memory and cognitive control are less reliable but have been found for at least some individuals on some tasks. In closing, the authors examine the many outstanding questions that remain to be addressed by future research and also identify obstacles facing this research.

For the abstract.

Complaint Laid in "Implanted Memories" Case

When Lisa Nasseff began  treatment for anorexia at the Castlewood Treatment Center in Saint Louis, MO in July 2007, she had no idea that her experience at the clinic would eventually lead to multiple hospitalizations and a suicide attempt.  In a recent complaint laid against Castlewood and her therapist, Mark Schwartz, the 41-year old Saint Paul, MN resident alleges that the treatment she received led to "great physical pain and suffering and anguish" and that her condition only improved once she left the clinic.  

According to the complaint, Nasseff was given numerous psychotropic medications to treat depression and anxiety and that Schwartz conducted repeated hypnosis sessions which allegedly created false memories of abuse.  These memories included having been a member of a satanic cult and carrying out gruesome acts of violence.   According to Nasseff and her attorney, Kenneth Vuylsteke, one of the acts involved "sacrificing her sister's baby on the altar of Satan".  The lawsuit also maintains that Schwartz persuaded Nasseff to isolate herself from her friends and family by convincing her that they were part of that same satanic cult that they would continue abusing her and forcing  her to commit further gruesome crimes.   When Nasseff discussed her experiences with other women who had been treated at the clinic, she realized that they were reporting similar accounts of "remembering" being part of Satanic cults.   Vuylsteke reported that "She got together with other women who had been through this with her at Castlewood. And they said, 'How can we all have been members of cults and not know it -- two years ago, three years ago? We all got brainwashed? It can't be right."    In the complaint, Vuylsteke declined to say how many women were making claims of implanted memories but indicated that other complaints would be entered on their behalf in future. 

Lisa Nasseff  spent eight months at the clinic beginning in 2007 and later returned in May 2009 before quitting the clinic in December of that same year.  According to her complaint, Mark Schwartz later contacted her in October 2010 and warned her that she would die from her anorexia if she did not return to Castlewood for treatment.  She also claimed that Schwartz later told her that her lawsuit would expose her involvement in Satanic activities as well as her "multiple rapes".  Schwartz, for his part, denied all of Nasseff's claims as well as allegations that he had hypnotized her (despite advertisment for the clinic indicating that hypnosis is one of the specialized services offered).  The clinic's executive director, Nancy Albers, has gone on record as saying that all of the implanted memory claims are without merit and that they are planning a vigorous defense. 

While cases of implanted memories stemming from use of recovered memory therapy have become the focus of increasing media attention, considerable controversy exists in legal circles over the existence of "repressed memories".  Prominent cognitive psychologist and University of California professor Elizabeth Loftus has become one of the leading authorities on false memories and has provided testimony in numerous cases despite active opposition from repressed memory activists .  Dismissing the existence of repressed memories, Dr. Loftus has repeatedly rejected the validity of recovered memory therapy and the often bizarre allegations of satanic child abuse that it uncovers.  Her own research into the malleability of memory demonstrates how easily false memories can be implanted through the use of suggestion. The numerous convictions for child abuse stemming from recovered memory therapy and the questions raised by researchers such as Dr. Loftus has led to the formation of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation (FSMF) in the early 1990s.  Although the FSMF has faced controversy over their methods and the often-anecdotal evidence used to dismiss legal claims of abuse, their role in legal actions against therapists in recovered memory cases has been considerable.

Kenneth Vuylsteke has stated that he was initially skeptical of Lisa Nasseff's claim but was convinced after talking with attorney Bill Smoler who recently won a large settlement over a similar case.  Smoler will be serving as co-counsel on Lisa Nasseff's case. Whatever the outcome of Lisa Nasseff's complaint, it is likely to provide further ammunition in the battle against recovered memory therapists and their use of often inappropriate methods to "retrieve" inaccessible memories.  Whether this will make future cases easier remains to be seen.

For more information

The Magnetic Doctor's Crime (Part 2)

Continued from Part 1

The coroner's inquest was held the next day and Laurence's testimony concerning her sister's death was considered so shocking that newspapers refused to print some of the details.  According to the young girl, they had arrived at Deschamps' room as usual and the doctor then told Juliette to take off her clothes and climb into bed.  He then stripped as well and climbed into bed with her.  Laurence said that this was typical for his sessions with her and that she had climbed into bed as well on several occasions.  She stressed that Deschamps had "done nothing to her" though.   On previous occasions, Juliette had often experienced religious visions when dosed with chloroform (including seeing the Virgin Mary and angels).  Deschamps seemed enthused by Juliette's visions and stated that she would eventually reveal the location of Lafitte's treasure which would make them all rich.  During that final session, Deschamps dosed Juliette with chloroform which he placed in a handkerchief over her mouth.   Apparently dissatisfied with the dose that he had given her, he got out of bed and dressed himself.  Telling Laurence not to disturb her sister, he left them alone while he went to buy more chloroform.   After returning, he told the curious Laurence that this would be "our most successful experiment" and began dosing Juliette further after stripping and climbing into bed again.

At some point (Laurence could not estimate how much later it was), Deschamps leaped out of bed and cried out "Mon Dieu! Mon Dieu!  Qu'est-ce que j'ai fait!"  ("My God!  My God! What have I done!").  When Laurence began crying, Deschamps comforted her and told her to "Go to your father.  Tell him that I am going to die!".   He then gathered a series of heavy books and placed them in a bundle which he made Laurence take with her.  Given the weight of the books, Laurence had to stop several times on the way to rest which delayed her in getting home.  

The coroner, Y.R. LeMonnier, had conducted an autopsy on Juliette's body and determined that the cause of death was an overdose of chloroform.  There were clear burn marks on her lips from the drug as well as evidence that Juliette had been sexually abused over a long period of time.  He also testified that he found bite marks and scratches of a very "unusual nature".   Jules Dietsch was too poor to bury Juliette properly and relied on donations from the public for help.   Media attention over the lurid details of the case ensured an enormous turnout at her modest funeral and more than forty thousand people came out to view her body before burial.

As for  Etienne Deschamps, his wounds were superficial since he had not stabbed himself that severely.  He was removed from the Charity Hospital to the Parish Prison just forty-eight hours after being admitted.   He made numerous wild accusations about Juliette and claimed that he had learned months before that she was "no better than a common prostitute" since she was no longer a virgin.   The statements that he gave to the police were contradictory and, at times, incoherent but stressed that her death had been an accident.   While in prison, he also made grandiose claims that he could find Lafitte's treasure if only he could be released and that they had no right to keep him locked up since he was a scientist and a great man.

Deschamps made several suicide attempts while awaiting trial.  On one occasion, he tried hanging himself from the bars of his cell which failed miserably (he was heard to complain loudly that "they won't even let me die".    Handwriting experts examined the various letters that were supposedly written by Juliette and concluded that some or all of them had been written by Deschamps himself.  The letters apparently implicated a married jeweller in the neighbourhood as having originally seduced Juliette.  When investigators ruled out any relationship with the jeweller (identified only as "Charlie"), they concluded that Deschamps had written the letters to suggest that he hadn't been the first one to be involved with Juliette.

Deschamps' arraignment before Judge R.H. Marr on February 18 became quite a spectacle.  Not only did he protest that putting him on trial in an English-speaking court was a farce since he only spoke French, but that he was a gentleman and definitely not a murderer.  He also argued that the entire trial was an attempt to smear the "fair name of France".   Judge Robert Marr eventually concluded that a "not guilty" plea had been entered (which wasn't exactly clear given Deschamps' blustering in French).   Since Deschamps refused to hire a lawyer, Judge Marr appointed one for him and ordered the trial to begin on May 1.  That night, Deschamps attempted suicide again by jumping off the top bunk in his cell head first.  All he got from that was a headache.

The trial was brief and Deschamps had to work through an interpreter (his lawer didn't understand French).   Laurence and Jules Deitsch took the stand and then the coroner  presented his own testimony which concluded that Juliette had died of chloroform poisoning and confirmed that she had been sexually abused.  Deschamps didn't testify.  After only eighteen minutes, the jury returned a verdict of guilty.   Not surprisingly, Deschamps' lawyer appealed the verdict to the Supreme Court and managed to have the verdict overturned on the grounds that  the defense had received insufficient time to prepare its case.  A new trial was ordered for March 28, 1890.

To be continued