Għargħur double murder: defendant suffered from psychosis, experts testify

The man indicted for the murders of his mother and aunt, suffered from a genetic disease which causes psychosis, a number of medical experts have told a jury today.

Two psychiatrists and a neurologist testified this morning as Kevin Micallef’s insanity trial entered its second day before Judge Consuelo Scerri Herrera. 

Micallef, 47, is indicted for the wilful homicide of his mother Antonia Micallef and his aunt Maria Carmel Fenech at their Gharghur home in July 2018. As the name suggests, an insanity trial is intended to establish whether the defendant was fit to stand trial or was legally insane at the time of the commission of the offence. 

Court-appointed expert, consultant psychiatrist Joe Cassar was the first witness, testifying via video link. He had examined Micallef on January 18, 2023, at the Mount Carmel halfway house, and had prepared a report together with Dr Etienne Felice and Dr Nigel Camilleri, which was handed to the jurors. 

The report concluded that Micallef suffers from a psychotic disorder. Despite knowing that killing is wrong, he believes that he had no alternative, the jury was told.

Dr Cassar explained that Micallef also had inherited Huntington’s disease, a genetic neuro-psychiatric condition whose degenerative onset manifests itself later on in adult life.

Cross-examined by the defence, Dr Cassar specified that Micallef suffered from delusions and believed that his mother and aunt were poisoning him in order to kill him. He also held the belief that they had turned his wife against him because ‘they wanted him for themselves.’

“He still holds this belief even after five years of being followed and given necessary medication,” the psychiatrist said.

Dr Felice and Dr Camilleri also took the witness stand. It was explained that psychosis was not the same as fixation or anxiety because it leads the affected individual to act on their thoughts. Micallef was convinced that his family members were out to kill him and acted on those beliefs.

Dr Camilleri added that Micallef was receiving treatment but that he should be held at Mount Carmel Hospital. The medical assessments carried out had all reached the same conclusion.

Last to testify this morning was consultant neurologist Malcom Vella.

He had examined Micallef in November 2020, as he was complaining of memory problems. Vella was told that in the past Micallef had suffered from hallucinations that the patient said were dictating his life and “possessing him”. 

Vella explained that losing touch with reality was a symptom of Huntington's disease. 

A certain diagnosis requires the finding of more than 40 repeated sequences of DNA, said the consultant neurologist. The defendant had 44. His father and brother also had the same condition and had died at a young age. Huntington's usually has these symptoms: excessive movement or dementia and psychosis, he said. “In Kevin's case the latter was the most evident.”

When the trial resumed after a short break, psychiatrists Prof. Anton Grech, Dr. George Debono and Dr. Anthony Zahra, who had been appointed by magistrate Monica Vella testified together, after presenting jurors with their report.

Prof. Grech had examined Micallef in July 2018, the day after the fatal stabbings. On the basis of his clinical notes from Mount Carmel Hospital and an interview with the defendant last November, the three psychiatrists had also concluded that he suffered from psychosis and organic delusion schizophrenia in the context of Huntington’s disease.

Huntington’s disease affected the nervous system but only a third of cases result in psychosis, they said.

Asked by jurors whether psychosis would affect a sufferers’ free will, they replied that the defendant’s actions had been based on his delusion. While he knew his actions would lead to deaths, his delusions led him to believe that he had no other alternative.

Consultant Psychiatrist Beppe Micallef Trigona, in whose care Micallef had spent two days in July 2018 also testified. He had certified the defendant as fit for police questioning and to give them his account of what happened.

“Mentally he wasn’t 100%,” said the psychiatrist, explaining that he held many beliefs which had no basis in reality, but he was able to explain his understanding of the events to the police.

Medico-forensic expert Dr. Mario Scerri, who examined the victims, testified last.

The judge ordered the jurors to retire from the courtroom in order to avoid them from being influenced by the graphic images which form part of Scerri’s report, ordering the photographs to be redacted before the report is handed to the jurors because this was an insanity trial and not the trial on the merits.

Lawyer Francois Dalli is Micallef’s defence counsel.