Dr. Michael Welner explains how he began his investigation as to the competence of David Mitchell, alleged kidnapper of Elizabeth Smart. "All forensics is local," says Dr. Welner. "And the local feature of this case was the language of Mitchell in his religion and how that spoke to how rational his thinking was, what inspired his religious path, and the context that shaped him." As such, in order to understand David Mitchell, Dr. Welner first had to understand Mormon origins, and more importantly, the fundamentalist sects that are off-shoots of LDS. Dr. Welner talks about his exploration of these little known communities, that are intentionally 'off the grid,' in this interview.
Michael Welner, M.D. has been chosen to be the principal forensic psychiatrist in some of America’s most sensitive litigation in recent years, particularly in highly complex cases and frontier issues. After establishing himself as a clinician specializing in working with patients who had failed to respond to treatment, Dr. Welner became known for his unusual capacity for finding answers to elusive forensic mysteries. Board Certified in four disciplines, and an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at NYU School of Medicine, Dr. Welner has defined by example the application of the cutting edge of science to forensic practice. His case experience has spanned the range of criminal, civil, employment, and securities law. Through careful investigation and detail-oriented interviewing, Dr. Welner has embodied diligence and objectivity as the staple of the forensic examination.
Dr. Welner is the chairman of The Forensic Panel http://www.forensicpanel.com/. He is currently studying how the Death Penalty is meted out in the United States. You can assist in his research by participating in a survey on depravity here: https://depravityscale.org/depscale/
You can read the Judge's ruling in the Mitchell case here: http://forensicpanel.com/data/Unsorted/Memorandum_Decision.pdf
follow me on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/funkcsi
Bob Gondor's 17 years in prison
WOW! I can't imagine spending 17 years in prision for a crime you did not commit. I'll never complain about being misunderstood by my husband again. Hurry up and get the next episode posted. I can't wait to hear how Bob's life turned out. Great interview Christine! Keep them coming here on your WIN show!
Tracy DeGraaf
Drunk Driving
Hi Christine! I just listened to your episode about the laws about drunk driving and found your conversation with Chuck Ramsay to be very interesting. While, thank God, I have a "two drink maximum - with plenty of food" rule that I personally follow no matter what, I found the information shared in your show enlightening. So many factors go into the law on this. Thanks for bringing this conversation to the surface. ;o)
Tracy DeGraaf