Guy Turcotte verdict is 'right,' forensic psychiatrist says

The second-degree murder verdict in the second trial of former cardiologist Guy Turcottewas the right one,given the factsabout the mental disorder he was diagnosed with, says forensic psychiatristGilles Chamberland.

During Turcotte's trial, experts on both sides agreed that hewas suffering froman adjustment disorder with symptoms of anxiety and depression when he killedhis two children,Olivier, 5, andAnne-Sophie, 3, onFeb. 20, 2009.

They differed on his state of mind, however, with defence expertssaying Turcotte was obsessed with suicide, mentally ill andincapable of telling right from wrong. This was the crux of the the defence's argument that Turcottewas not criminally responsible to their deaths.

Prosecution experts counteredthat he was in control and responsible for the acts.

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In contact with reality

"I've never seen somebody declared not [criminally] responsible with [an adjustment disorder] diagnosis," Chamberland,of the Universit de Montral's Institut Philippe-Pinel, told CBC News.

"I've never seen anyone with an adjustment disorder who was not in contact with reality," he said.

Turcotte was being tried for first-degree murder for a second time in connection the killings.

In the first trial in 2011, Turcotte was found not criminally responsible for their deaths, but that verdict was overturned on appeal in 2013.

One expert called by the prosecution referred to adjustment disorder as "the common cold" of psychiatry and downplayed the severity of the disorder in his testimony.

Guy Turcotte found guilty of 2nd-degree murder

9 years ago

Duration 3:32

Former Quebec doctor guilty in the deaths of his two children in 2009

Verdict makes sense

While saying the comparison to a cold was not necessarily fair, Chamberland said the second verdict makes sense given what's known about the disorder.

"It's very broad, in the sense that it can be very, very light but it could also be very intense," Chamberland said.

"In the case of Mr. Turcotte, the jury seems to think it was intense, but not enough to make him not responsible. The jury decided he still understood what he was doing, and was still able to understand and to know that what he was doing was wrong."

Mother wants expert accountability

Isabelle Gaston, Turcotte's ex-wife and the mother of Olivier and Anne-Sophie, said Quebec's Collge des mdecins has to hold medical experts more accountable for their testimonies in cases where criminal responsibility is at issue.

"When someone takes the stand in court and testifies that an adjustment disorder can justify the murder of children, I have serious questions," she said.

"It's still medicine, even if it's in a court, and we can't let that go without inspection and without analysis. If not, it undermines the public's confidence in its institutions."