A health care provider has advised a homicide trial there’s “no clear evidence” to help a person’s defence that he was affected by a psychological dysfunction on the time he killed a lady and her two-year-old daughter.
Andrew Innes, 52, has admitted killing Bennylyn Burke, 25, and toddler Jellica and burying them below his kitchen ground however has denied homicide by placing ahead a defence of missing felony accountability and diminished accountability.
He is at present on trial for homicide on the High Court in Edinburgh.
The jury had beforehand been advised that Innes was taking steroid treatment for a situation and had not slept on the time of the deaths.
On Friday, forensic psychiatrist Dr Gordon Cowan, 36, refuted that Innes had suffered steroid-induced psychosis, telling the court docket that he discovered “no clear evidence of a mental disorder”.
Innes advised jurors yesterday that he noticed Ms Burke as a hybrid between his estranged spouse and one other former associate who dumped him by textual content, and that led to him launching the deadly assault.
Dr Cowan mentioned: “It’s clear he held resentment towards his ex-partners and this lady in front of him, in some way, reminded him of these ladies and he became angry, uncontrollably angry.”
Dr Cowan highlighted that Innes had modified his defence a variety of instances.
He reportedly advised one psychiatrist that Ms Burke attacked him, the court docket heard. On one other event he mentioned he heard a voice in his head, reportedly saying: “I think the other guy wanted me to get angry and asked me to kill her. I said don’t be stupid, she’s done nothing wrong.”
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Dr Cowan did agree it was “not impossible” to rule out steroid-induced psychosis, however it was “extremely unlikely”.
He concluded there was “no evidence” to help Innes’s diminished accountability defence.
Speaking about Innes’s psychological state, Dr Cowan mentioned: “In my opinion, on balance, I don’t think there was evidence he was impaired.”
A joint minute of agreed proof between prosecutors and the defence group was learn out to the jury firstly of the trial.
It was accepted that Innes stabbed Ms Burke, from Bristol, on the physique with a knife, in addition to repeatedly placing her on the top with a hammer and the deal with of the blade.
It was additionally accepted that Innes asphyxiated Jellica earlier than burying each our bodies below the kitchen ground of his property.
Innes denies additional fees of raping a main school-aged youngster and trying to defeat the ends of justice.
All of the alleged incidents are mentioned to have taken place at Innes’s home in Troon Avenue, Dundee, between 20 February and 5 March 2021.
The trial, earlier than Lord Beckett, continues.
Source: information.sky.com”