Developments in the retrial of Lyle and Erik Menendez from Feb. 5 - 9.
FEBRUARY 5
Lyle Menendez's former fiancee contradicted Erik's earlier testimony about when he learned that his brother wore a wig.
Jamie Pisarcik testified that Erik told her in late 1988 he was "surprised about Lyle's wig." On cross-examination, defense lawyers tried to show that Pisarcik either made up the story or simply thought she had the conversation with Erik before the killings.
Pisarcik's testimony could call into question a major part of the defense case: that a week-long family confrontation between Jose and Kitty Menendez and their sons led to the fatal shootings on August 20, 1989.
Erik had testified that he found out about the hairpiece just days before the killings, when Kitty Menendez ripped it off Lyle's head and threw it in his face. Erik said he thought that his mother had ripped Lyle's hair right out of his head.
Erik said the revelation made him realize that the family was fraught with secrets and he then decided to tell Lyle his secret -- that he had been molested by their father. According to Erik, an enraged Lyle threatened to expose his father as a child molester if he didn't stop. The father responded by threatening to kill his sons, Erik said. The brothers claim they shot their parents out of fear for their lives.
FEBRUARY 6
Lyle Menendez's former fiancee Jamie Pisarcik completed her testimony.
FEBRUARY 7
The court was in recess because Erik Menendez was sick.
FEBRUARY 8
A prominent psychiatrist testified that Erik Menendez did not suffer from any disorder that would have impaired his ability to make rational decisions on the night he shot his parents.
Dr. Park Dietz instead diagnosed Erik as suffering from generalized anxiety disorder -- the inability to control his restlessness, worry and irritability. In other words, Erik was just a worried person when he shot his parents on August 20, 1989.
The defense claims that Erik suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder caused by years of psychological, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of his parents. Dr. Dietz told jurors that it was impossible to diagnose Erik with the disorder because there's no way of knowing if the events that allegedly caused it were true.
"I don't believe he has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," said Dr. Dietz, who interviewed Erik for 16 hours several weeks ago. "Instead, I'm diagnosing generalized anxiety disorder."
Dr. John Wilson, a defense psychiatric expert, previously testified that Erik was suffering from the disorder when he and his brother killed his parents. Dr. Wilson said that Erik did not appear to be faking the claims of abuse.
The state's decision to call Dr. Dietz is one of the most significant differences in this trial compared to the first trial. Prosecutors in the first trial made a motion early in the trial to have one of its experts examine the brothers. But they never followed through with the motion, and dropped the issue.
Over the years, Dr. Dietz has testified in numerous high-profile trials. His critics say his testimony always favors the prosecution. He has helped prosecutors win convictions against Betty Broderick for fatally shooting her husband and his second wife, and serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.
During his testimony, Dr. Dietz also rejected other conclusions presented by the defense's expert witness.
The defense claims Erik could not just leave his abusive environment because he suffered from learned helplessness, a symptom of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But Dr. Dietz said the fact that Erik left to buy shotguns, loaded the weapon and went to a shooting range to learn to fire the weapon showed rebelliousness and assertive behavior, inconsistent with the passiveness of learned helplessness.
FEBRUARY 9
The prosecution completed its rebuttal case after defense attorneys concluded a surprisingly short cross-examination of psychiatrist Dr. Park Dietz.
Defense attorney Leslie Abramson said she questioned Dr. Dietz only for two hours because she believed his testimony did more good than harm for the defense.
Dr. Dietz testified that Erik Menendez suffered from an anxiety disorder, but was rational at the time he shot his parents.
But Dr. Dietz also said it's impossible to diagnose Erik with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder because there's no way of knowing if the events that allegedly caused the disorder were true. The defense claims that Erik suffers from the disorder because of years of psychological, physical and sexual abuse at the hands of his parents.
