Adolescent psychiatrist Wade Myers met with Cody Posey for eight hours over three days and reviewed witness interviews and statements before determining whether Cody had psychopathic tendencies before he gunned down his parents and stepsister.

His assessment, which he did using a version of the Hare Psychopathy Checklist, is designed to detect behavioral traits in adolescents that could lead to adult antisocial behavior.

Using the information he had about Cody's behavioral, interpersonal and emotional history, Myers rated Cody in 20 categories according to the degree to which he manifested certain psychopathic traits. In the scoring, 0 means the trait "does not apply"; 1 means "applies somewhat"; and 2 means "applies very well." Cody scored 19 out of a possible 40. According to Myers, an average child scores about 3.2.

Impression management

This first category refers to the desire to present oneself in the best light possible at the cost of being "superficially charming." Myers gave Cody a 1 in terms of the extent to which he puts his best face forward, even if it means presenting himself to others as "someone better" than he really is.

Grandiose sense of self

Myers said Cody told him that his friends said he had a tendency to brag and described him as somewhat conceited, compelling the doctor to give him a 1.

Stimulation seeking

This category describes a person's risk-taking and thrill-seeking tendencies. Myers gave Cody a 1, based on the fact that Cody sometimes rode his bike on dangerous paths, fought with others at school and was reprimanded for inappropriately touching his girlfriend on the school bus.

Pathological lying

Cody admitted to the psychiatrist that he had told lies all his life, but Myers gave him a 1 because he also saw evidence "that he was honest," particularly when he finally admitted to shooting his parents and stepsister. Even so, Myers noted that he was unable to tell for sure when Cody was being truthful in his police confession.

Manipulation for personal gain

Myers gave Cody a 1 for his level of deceit and manipulation of others. He noted, however, that the greatest evidence of this trait manifested itself after the killings, when he attempted to throw police off his track and initially denied involvement in his interview with police.

Lack of remorse

Myers said that, although Cody did not appear to show much remorse for killing his parents and felt his actions were justified, he gave Cody a 1, considering the remorse exhibited for killing his stepsister Marilea.

Shallow affect

This category refers to a tendency to feign emotion or an inability to experience depth of emotion. Myers said Cody had a documented history of demonstrating shallow emotions, particularly when his biological mother died, and gave him a 1.

Lack of empathy/callousness

Myers gave Cody a 2 for callousness because he killed his stepsister to prevent her from being a witness to the crime, even though he claimed to get along with her.

Parasitic orientation/using others to meet needs

Myers said there was nothing in Cody's history that indicated he used others to meet his needs, and gave him a 0.

Poor anger control

Cody also got the highest rating of 2 for his inability to control his anger, based on his own admissions and evidence from his school records. Myers also cited an example from the journal belonging to Cody's stepmother, Tryone, who wrote that Cody once turned around to strike his father just for attempting to fix his collar.

Impersonal sexual behavior

Myers gave Cody a 1 for demonstrating an ability to interact sexually with others without an emotional attachment, based on statements that he allegedly had "mutual oral sex" with three girls at school. [Cody's defense says he answered the question incorrectly because he thought oral sex meant French kissing].

Early behavior problems

Myers gave Cody a 1 based on school records, which indicated that Cody "acted out" as a child and had trouble controlling his behavior through junior high school.

Lacks goals

Myers said this did not apply to Cody, who, as a child, expressed "reasonable goals" of wanting to work in computer science. Since his case began, he has expressed an interest in working in law.

Impulsivity

Myers said Cody admitted to being "somewhat impulsive" in life, and gave him a 1, although he noted that nothing in the killings indicated impulsive behavior.

Irresponsibility

Myers gave Cody a 1 for the degree of irresponsibility he demonstrated by failing to live up to his obligations with school and work, despite his obvious potential.

Failure to accept responsibility

Particularly when it came to the killing, Myers said Cody had a tendency to blame others for his problems, and gave him a 1.

Unstable interpersonal relationships

According to Myers, Cody said he "never really liked Tryone, but wasn't quite sure why," leading him to rate him a 1.

Serious criminal behavior

Though Myers noted that Cody had no history of serious discipline issues or problems with the law, he gave him a 2 for the "seriousness of his behavior" in killing three people.

Serious violations of conditional release

At the behest of Otero County Children's Court attorney Sandra Grisham, Myers skipped over this category without explaining it to the jury, because it did not apply to Cody.

Criminal versatility/breath of criminal behavior:

Criminal versatility is the measure of the breadth of criminal offenses committed by an adolescent. Myers acknowledged the severe nature of Cody's decision to kill his family, but still gave him a zero for the lack of variety in the killings and because he had no prior criminal record.

For more on the test and its creator, visit Crime Library.