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PSYCHIATRIC EVALUATION
OF
LARRY ROBISON
Tom Gray, Ph.D. and Myself interviewed Larry Robison for approximately
eight hours. Prior to the interview I informed Larry Robison that
everything discussed today would be shared with attorney Robert
Hager and Melodee Smith and may end up being shared with others
in a court of law or at the discretion of his attorneys.
The questions to be explored in this report are does Larry Robison
currently suffer from a major mental illness, has he in the past
suffered from a major mental illness and was he experiencing psychotic
thought processes secondary to this illness at the time of his crime
in August of 1982?
List of informants:
University of Kansas Medical Center Initial Contact Summary
08/09/73.
Huguely Hospital Discharge Summary 11/14/78 - 12/11/78
John Peter Smith Discharge Summary 11/14/78 - 12/11/78
Veterans Hospital, Waco, Texas - Psychological testing by Annie
P. Baugh, Ed.D. 12/15/78
Notes on interview with Karen Hastings by Larry Robison.
Psychiatric Evaluation by C.D. Buckholtz, D.O. 06/15/83.
Psychiatric P-valuation by E.Clay Griffith, M.D. 06/06/83.
Fort Worth Police Department report 08/12/82.
The Making of a Paranoid Schizophrenic by Larry Robison.
Texas Department of Corrections Progress Notes 1983 - 1999
Psychological Evaluation by J. Randall Price, Ph.D.
Interviews with Lois Robison on phone and in person, approximately
4 hours.
Interview with Larry Robison at the Ellis Unit in Huntsville, Texas
for 8 hours, 6/99.
Interviews with Robert Hager on phone and in person approximately
2 hours.
MEDICAL HISTORY:
Age 2 - Larry Robison dropped on his head by his mother. Questionable
loss of consciousness, projectile
vomiting reported and needed emergency hospital services.
Age unknown - hit on the head with a bottle, no loss of consciousness
noted.
PSYCHIATRIC HISTORY:
Age 15 - Larry Robison hospitalized at the University of Kansas
Medical Center. The records
are incomplete. Initial impression - Adolescent Adjustment Reaction.
Age 21 - Hospitalized for one day. Diagnosis Chronic Paranoid Schizophrenia
and
polysubstance abuse.
Age 21 - Hospitalized at John Peter Smith 11/14/78 to 12/11/78.
Diagnosed as Borderline
Personality Disorder and Drug Abuse.
Age 21 - Hospitalized at Waco VA 12/12/78. Diagnosis Paranoid Schizophrenia
and Drug
Abuse.
Age 26 - Incarcerated at Texas Department Of Corrections in Huntsville,
Texas. Treated intermittently, for psychiatric problems. Psychotic
disorder described.
FAMILY HISTORY:
Biological father -alcoholic. Paternal Uncle- Major mental
illness, diagnosis unknown Sister - Schizoaffective, Bipolar type,
Paternal Aunt - Schizophrenia Paranoid Type Larry's biological father's
cousin - Schizophrenia, Paranoid type
CURRENT RELIGION:
"I follow the Guru,"
LEGAL HISTORY:
Larry Robison reported a history of "writing bad checks,"
"burglarizing a car," "insurance scam." While in the Air Force "I
got caught stealing gas for my car."
SUBSTANCE:
Larry reported I've done everything." He and his mother reported
his use of substances began during his adolescence: age 14 - abuse
of beer and rare use of inhalants (glue); age 15 - LSD, hashes,
marijuana, amphetamines, dexedrine. IV use of speed 1976-1982. Favorite
drugs v ere hallucinogens and speed. He reported "I never drank
as much as I did drugs."
SOCIAL HISTORY:
Larry Robison was born on 08/12/57. He was estranged from
his biological father at an early age but his mother remarried shortly
after the separation. His biological father died of a brain tumor.
Larry has one half-brother, one half-sister, one stepsister, one
whole brother and two whole sisters. Larry made A's up until age
13 and did well in the Boy Scouts during this time. He started to
display behavioral problems around age 13. Examples such as truancy,
shoplifting and experimentation with drugs and alcohol. He denied
ever torturing animals, setting fires or nocturnal enuresis. His
desire to leave home precipitated his dropping out of hi ;high school
in his senior year. Larry describes his life as quite chaotic after
quitting school. He reported that in order for him to stay out of
jail he joined the Air Force. It was while he was in the Air Force
that he reported he felt like "I began changing mentally". His armed
services career ended prematurely when he was caught stealing gasoline
to fuel his empty car. After returning from overseas and now being
forced from the Air Force, he began taking drugs again, hitchhiking
and working odd jobs. Larry also would change residence frequently
due to his unstable financial, social and psychological life. At
one point he married a topless dancer named Gina. This lasted a
short period of time, then he fathered a child with Tina, a woman
he had met in a halfway house, His last relationship was with Melissa
and like the others did not last long.
INTERVIEW OF LARRY ROBISON
Mr. Robison was initially seated behind a glass partition with
a screen located at the bottom to allow for the exchange of verbal
information. I immediately requested the interview location be moved
to a room where there would be no impedance to communication between
all parties.
The guards graciously moved Tom Gray, Ph.D., Mr. Robison and myself
into an air-conditioned room which had adequate seating for all.
The guards left us in the room alone with Mr. Robison.
Mr. Robison remained handcuffed with hands located in front of
his body throughout the entire interview. He was very cooperative
and appeared quite sincere in his responses to questioning. He was
nondisheveled in appearance ,a mildly obese, balding individual,
who appeared his stated age of 42 years.
His eye contact is mildly abnormal with mild prolongation noted
at times throughout the interview. Hi: speech was normal volume
and rate but at times he was verbally persistent and needed to be
interrupted. No pressured speech was note(L No psychomotor agitation
or retardation was exhibited by the inmate Larry Robison.
His mood remained euthymic and his affect was mildly restricted
throughout the interview. He did riot exhibit any symptoms suggestive
of mania. He did not appear to attend to external stimuli and exhibited
no flight of ideas or looseness of association. He did exhibit tangential
thought processes on several occasions. These thought processes
tended to coincide with bizarre thought content that he exhibited
during the interview.
Strange thought content was exhibited when he described his
past thoughts, both before, during and after the crime. His
current beliefs have not changed and remain at times quite delusional.
He interprets many events in the past and at this time as quite
magical psychic or having some bizarre mystical explanation, Some
examples of this would be at age 21 there were dismembered spirits
all around me explaining to me what was going on." "I was , suddenly
awakened with psychic energy." Also around this age "I felt I'd
been struck by a bolt of lightning and I felt I could hurt someone."
His recollection of past thoughts was full of very bizarre thoughts
and paranoid delusional thoughts of others being after him. He also
reported in the past "I felt like I was controlled by outside forces,"
Approximately two weeks prior to his crimes he reported he was experiencing
auditory hallucinations, commanding him to kill the people he was
staying with in Wichita, Kansas but he was able to refrain. He did
feel at that time a tremendous need to kill them. These same symptoms
he reported were the driving force behind his five murders on August
10, 1982. He was very hesitant in admitting these symptoms back
then as pure symptoms, Tom Gray and I had to navigate our way through
his mystical and religious explanations for these psychotic symptoms,
in order to clarify the symptoms. he was also very difficult to
get to admit to current psychotic symptoms due to his complicated
and bizarre explanation for an encapsulated psychotic system of
thoughts.
Similarly, when Larry was presented with questions about his current
experiences regarding psychotic symptoms, his answers could have
been interpreted as evasive. He appeared to try and persuade us
that he was experiencing a "much higher form of thought and psychic
energy" but when the questions persisted or time would pass during
the interview, it was clear that at times he still experiences auditory
and visual hallucinations. It is my opinion that Mr. Robison was
sincere in his delusional beliefs and that his bizarre statements
are his way of comprehending and making sense out of his psychotic
symptoms. A times he could mention the hearing of voices but when
attempts were made to clarify he would cloud the issue with delusional
statements and the, clarification would be, lost.
It became apparent that his symptoms now and in the past could
occur even when not having taken substances for months. He did admit
that drugs, especially "the psychedelics", made his symptoms worse.
Mr. Robison was clearer in answering questions relate I to mood
symptoms. I found it difficult to elicit the length of time he experienced
these. He is quite clear that he's experienced racing thoughts,
a grandiose sense of power; and energy, and a decreased need for
sleep, hyper-religiosity and excessive phone use. "I had a psychic
connection with the phone." He denied rapid speech in the past.
Larry also reported periods of feeling depressed throughout his
life, he admitted to loss of interest, increased sleep, no change
in appetite, but his concentration and energy would decrease significantly
during these times. He reported these symptoms could occur when
not on substances or having abstained for several months. He admitted
the depressive symptoms could last for months but I could not determine
whether the mood symptoms were or were not related to the thought
disorder symptoms temporally. He reported on one occasion he did
slash his wrist in the county jail secondary to feeling depressed.
His quick admission to the manic and depressive symptoms contrasted
starkly with his clandestine admission of thought disorder symptoms.
He somehow did not give magical or mystical significance to the
symptoms of mood aberration as he did with psychotic symptoms.
It was surprising how easily Mr. Robison discussed the events leading
up to, during and immediately after the crime. He recalled experiencing
strange, command hallucinations telling him to kill along with a
powerful need to kill starting two weeks before the murders. He
was staying with two people in Wichita, Kansas who were helping
him and whom he liked. He felt an overwhelming need to kill them.
He refrained and moved back to Texas and moved in with a friend.
His desires to kill continued, precipitating his purchase of a Ruger
22-caliber pistol "to kill people." Mr. Robison believes his killings
were so he could "save their souls from damnation." "They are now
protected souls." "I wasn't going to get any peace until I killed
these people."
He admitted "the voices were real Strong commanding me to kill."
He admitted, there were outside forces moving me." He also admitted
an "excitement Similar to fear on that day." He described shooting
Ricky first.
He admitted "I really like him but see I was on a mission to save
the. world's souls." "I thought I needed to kill everybody." Mr.
Robison described the events of the ' crime with no emotion ' just
matter-of-factly. He noted mutilating Ricky's body and severing
his head with a kitchen knife and laying the head in Ricky's arms.
When asked why he did this he responded "I don't know." He reported
he killed Georgia, her son, and her mother. "I felt detached when
I killed her mother." He also admitted to multiple stab wounds in
many of the victims and was not sure why he did this. Larry reported
that after the first four murders he felt there needed to be a "revelation"
of some sort and when that did not occur he became somewhat confused
and considered suicide. "I sat around for two hours and contemplated
suicide when no revelation occurred." "I shot Bruce Gardner then
he came to pick up Georgia." He reported he drove to Wichita and
was arrested by the police in a church parking lot.
Today he believes on the one hand that the actions of the crime
were "insane" but that the victim's souls are saved because of his
actions. Over-all he believes that God is controlling everything
and therefore everything is o.k."
Mr. Robison was alert and oriented to person, place and time. He
had good immediate short and long term memory. In fact, his memory
for past presidents was extensive. He knew the colors of the U.S.
flag "red, white, blue." He could spell "world" forward and in reverse
"dlrow" Digit span F=8 R=4. Serial 7's - no mistakes. Proverbs and
Similarities were abstract.
Currently denied any thoughts of harming self or others.
OPINION
1) It is my opinion that Mr. Larry Robison currently suffers from
a major mental illness.The most probable diagnosis is Chronic Paranoid
Schizophrenia - but one cannot rule out Schizoaffective Disorder,
Bipolar type
2) It is my opinion that Mr. Larry Robison suffers from
Polysubstance Abuse (in institutional remission)
3) It is my opinion that Mr. Robison suffers from Antisocial Personality
Disorder.
4) It is my opinion that Mr. Robison was experiencing severe psychotic
symptoms immediately before and during the crimes he committed.
REASONS FOR:
OPINION #1 (#1 - 6 are taken from the interview)
1) His attempt to deny any psychotic symptoms and only with repeated
questions does it become evident that he still is experiencing hallucinations
intermittently.
2) Thought content that is bizarre and delusional.
3) Speech that is mildly tangential.
4) Continuous speech that at times necessitates interruption.
5) Occasions of mildly prolonged eye contact.
6) He readily admits to both depressive and manic symptoms in the
past and up to the present.
7) An honest lack of fear of death because Larry believes his soul
is saved and will enter a higher plane and that he will never really
die.
8) A very significant psychiatric history which documents several
hospitalizations where he was found to be suffering from Paranoid
schizophrenia. Also in his history R.C. Duchers, Ph.D. and Annie
Baugh performed both neuropsychological and psychological testing
which was consistent with a thought disorder and on one occasion
a manic component. The TDC progress notes make note of Larry experiencing
auditory hallucinations (04/24/86) and delusional thoughts. Ms Lois
Robison gives a clear history of Larry's (her son) deterioration
to a clear thought disorder. Lastly, in reviewing Dr. Buckholtz's
psychiatric evaluation Larry admits to psychotic symptoms.
This well documented psychotic history lends great credibility
to his current thought disorder since the normal course of schizophrenia
is one in which the symptoms start in males from age 15 - 25 and
there is a lifelong disease. Lastly, schizophrenia is a physical
disease which effects the brain and its neurotransmitter system
and this disease is passed on genetically. The genetic loading for
schizophrenia is quite profound in his family background especially
his biological father's family.
OPINION #2
1) Larry's own report of his extreme drug use beginning in his
early teens.
2) Larry's mother (Lois Robison) gives corroborating evidence of
his drug use.
3) His past psychiatric hospitalizations give him a diagnosis of
polysubstance abuse.
OPINION #3
1) Historical documentation taken from hospital reports and psychiatric
reports (C.D. Buckholtz 06/15/83).
2) Larry Robison's own admission of his early years (prior to age
15 and after) of truancy, theft, impulsive drug use, impulsive sexual
activity, drunken driving, multiple crimes and little regard for
authority.The evidence in Opinion #3 was not necessarily caused
by or related to his thought disorder.
OPINION #4
1) Larry's consistent reports of command hallucinations telling
him to kill, together with a tremendous urge to "kill people."
2) As reported by Larry) a slow onset of delusional thoughts (desire
to kill) which started two weeks prior to the crime in Wichita,
Kansas where he almost killed two old friends who were helping him.
Delusions typically begin slowly.
3) At this time in Wichita Mr. Larry Robison purchased a machete,
lured a dog into the garage, killed it, strained the blood and drank
it. (Taken from J. Randall Price, Ph.D. notes).
4) While in Wichita (approximately two weeks prior to the killings)
Blanche (friend) asked Larry to wake her if he needed anything.
"I thought that meant to Sacrifice her" (from J. Randall Price Ph.D.
notes).
5) The recent acquisition of the .22 caliber handgun which
he planned on using to satisfy his urge to kill. Larry reported
he "never liked guns." This purchase was out of character for him.
6) The victims were his friends who he had no logical or rational
motive to want to hurt
7) A significant percentage of mass murderers (approximately 40%)
exhibit psychotic symptoms at the time of their mass murder (Ref
Hempel, A.G., Meloy, J.R., Richards T. Journal of the American
Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, V 27 pages 213- 225. 1999).
8) The brutal overkill as evidenced by multiple gunshot wounds
to the victims and an extreme number of stabbings to the victim's
dead bodies.
9) The severing of his friend's head, severing of the victim's
penis and testicles and the consumption of these testicles by Larry
Robison.
10) Larry's denial all along of the use of drugs three months prior
to the killings ]ends credibility that these acts (killings) were
secondary to psychosis.
11) Larry's use of a kitchen knife versus a more efficient tool
such as a large hunting knife or a saw. One commonly sees the psychotic
perpetrator pick up whatever weapon is close by and convenient (kitchen
knife) when killing in a psychotic rage. The killer driven by psychopathy
usually has a more efficient weapon or knife to carry out his pre-planned
killings.
12) Larry's several hour delay from the time of his killings to
his departure, this delay could increase the odds of him leaving
more evidence and getting caught on the premises of the murder.
13) Larry's almost robotic cooperation in answering the Wichita
police questions and freely admitting to the killings and reporting
his psychotic thoughts.
14) After killing Rick (first victim) he had the magical belief
that "all clocks slipping over to zero." "That clocks made me think
of a race to kill as many people as you can before they catch you"
(from C.D. Buckholtz, D.O. report).
15) After the murders driving a prolonged distance in daytime hours
and ending up in a church parking lot which would make his detection
easy.
16) While traveling in the car Mr. Robison reports he did not listen
to the radio to learn if the police had discovered the crimes because
"I was feeling pretty detached, like someone else ha d done it"
(from C.D. Buckholtz, D.O. report).
17) Mr. Robison did not discard the murder weapon (.22 caliber
pistol) instead he kept it in his car. This is consistent with his
desire to kill others and not consistent with a rational escape
attempt.
18) Larry's report to C.D. Buckholtz of his "strange thoughts"
the day of the crime.
19) Larry's aimless driving after the killings.
The evidence is very persuasive that Larry was psychotic both
before and during the mass murder and it is my opinion that he knew
the legal wrongfulness of his actions but not the moral wrongfulness.
Recent research (Ref: Monahan J. Steadman H: Violence and Mental
Disorder: Developments in Risk Assessment. Chicago: University of
Chicago, 1994) that was not available until 1994 clearly shows that
certain psychotic symptoms are associated and cause an elevated
risk of danger to others. Larry Robison exhibited most of these:
a) paranoia, b) a feeling of being controlled by another force,
c) command hallucinations to kill congruent with his delusional
system of needing to save his friend's souls by taking their lives.
It is my opinion that these psychotic thoughts
were the driving force behind his heinous murders.
One must understand that Larry Robison is an extremely
bright individual. His overall IQ tested at 134 with his verbal
intelligence even testing higher. It is my opinion that this superior
verbal intelligence has worked against Mr. Robison, in that his
ability to hide and mask his psychotic symptoms has caused other
professionals to come to the opinion that he is not a sick man.
It is common in psychiatry to witness this phenomenon especially
individuals who suffer from paranoia. It is very common that these
individuals of high IQ's make detection of their problem very difficult.
The cause for this psychotic deception is due to lack of insight
which is classic for the paranoid schizophrenic. It is my opinion
that it is imperative that Mr. Robison undergo psychological and
neuropsychological testing to give us a better understanding of
the pathology that exist in his mind.
This type of individual needs treatment with antipsychotic medications
to at best, eradicate the delusions, but more commonly and in this
case more probably, to decrease the affective component which is
typically brought on by the psychotic thought processes. Mr. Robison
also exhibits mood symptoms, which in my opinion would improve with
the addition of a mood stabilizing medication. It is my opinion
that with the above noted treatments Mr. Robison's risk for violence
and dangerousness would decrease significantly.
Anthony G. Hempel, D.O., M.A.
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