Jared Lee Loughner-Psychiatric or Personality Disordered Violence

Jared Lee Loughner, an infamous 22 year old young man is presently incarcerated for the Tucson, Arizona rampage killings. Media and those following his case deem him a severely deranged man. As more details about his psychological profile unravel, experts will diagnose him with a psychiatric and/or personality disorder.

January 8th 2011, six people were brutally murdered and eighteen others shot by a young suburban man. The deceased included a nine-year-old girl, a congressional aide, a respected judge, and a popular congresswoman. Jared Lee Loughner was arrested for the slaying as the nation mourns his heinous actions. Pundits attempt to define Mr. Loughner's motivation using political scapegoats and social policy problems. The reality is Mr. Loughner suffers from a severe illness rooted in psychiatric and/or personality dysfunction. His legal team will have the very best forensic experts lined up to testify on Mr. Loughner's state of mind during the commission of the slaying. In order to commit such a brutal act, Mr. Loughner certainly suffers from a psychiatric illness, personality disorder, or a combination of the two. Defense attorneys will attempt to show Mr. Loughner was in the throes of a thought or mood disorder making him not culpable for his actions. Although personality disorders can be just as debilitating as psychiatric illnesses, they are not considered as cognitively debilitating as psychiatric illness. The mental health industry relies on the DSM, or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. In 2013, the 5th edition will be released for circulation. This book is compiled with hundreds of mental and psychiatric conditions that impair humans. Psychiatrists and Psychologists use the DSM as an important resource to diagnose and communicate to others a person's mental deficits. All disorders in the DSM are based on a five Axis level system. Axis III, IV, and V have to do with potential medical conditions, life stressors, and how the person manages those two elements. Axis I and Axis II are the elements of the system that speak directly to an individuals cognitive and emotional stability. To be diagnosed with an Axis I disorder, the problematic signs and symptoms causing the person distress are acute, debilitating, and often involves a sense by the patient they are feeling and/or thinking out of sorts or disordered. People who suffer from Axis I psychiatric Illnesses think, feel, and behave differently than what they are accustomed to. Relating to Mr. Loughner, his defense attorneys will likely attempt to prove he suffers from an Axis I psychiatric condition which compromised his capacity to be thinking rationally leading him to the rampage. If the trial attorneys can prove he is Schizophrenic, then the jury can not find him guilty without reasonable doubt. There are many potential conditions in which a person truly is debilitated precluding his/her ability to think and act responsibly. The question is if Mr. Loughner meets criteria for a severe Axis I disorder. Axis II conditions are called personality disorders. Personality disorders are defined as inflexible and maladaptive patterns of behavior. These maladaptive patterns negatively affect an individual's quality of life and they often do not know they suffer from a personality disorder. People suffering from personality disorders suffer various negative consequences from their condition and often blame others for their quandaries. There are ten different personality disorders that vary in expression and style of presentation. These ten types are reasonably distinct methods of interfacing with their environment. One example would be Paranoid Personality Disorder. People with this type of personality disorder tend to be highly suspicious of others peoples behaviors and have great difficulties maintaining functional relationships. Nine other personality disorders are defined all causing significant impairment. Personality disorders can not be cured because they are pervasive in that their signs and symptoms are part of the person's personality. The goal of treatment is not curing the disorder, but reducing the negative consequences the disorder causes. Treatment can not cure a personality disorder, but increase a person's adaptive functioning in order to increase his/her quality of life. The primary difference between Axis I and Axis II disorders relate directly to the level of impairment they can cause. With Axis I disorders, a person's level of impairment can impact their ability to behave in a rational responsible behavior. For this reason, people who commit criminal acts can be found not guilty for reasons of insanity. This means that in the eyes of the law the person is not responsible for their actions because they were not in their -sane- mind during the commission on the crime. With personality disorders, the individual may be severely dysfunctional, but their condition does not impair their capacity to differentiate right from wrong. Hence, an individual can not be found not guilty because they are always still in their -right- mind during the commission of the crime. As mentioned above, Mr. Loughner's defense team will attempt to prove to the jury that he suffers from an Axis I psychiatric disorder suggesting he was not culpable for his actions. If they can not persuade the jury of a verifiable psychiatric illness, it will be fair to assume Mr. Loughner suffers from a severe personality disorder that influenced him to murder and maim an innocent group of citizens. If not found suffering from an Axis I psychiatric condition, he will likely be diagnosed with Antisocial Personality Disorder. Although not in the DSM, a severe form of Antisocial Personality Disorder is considered by some to be considered a sociopath. Over the coming months, Mr. Loughner will be defended by the same attorney who represented the Unibomber. The question will be is if the defense team can succeed at persuading a percentage of the jury to question Mr. Loughner's state of mind leading up to and during the commission of his rampage assault. Recently, peers and acquaintances are reporting information he premeditated the attack suggesting he was not mentally impaired. The argument will be psychiatric illness vs. personality disorder.


Dr. Michael Nuccitelli is a New York based psychologist and a certified forensic consultant. In addition to his areas of expertise, Dr. Nuccitelli makes himself available for interview for radio/television, internet, and print media. Forensic psychology is one of his greatest areas of interest and offers valuable information to media representatives covering criminal news. To contact him, please email him at or via phone at 845-592-0120.

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