this story appeared in my Gmail alert today:
A man convicted in the murders of two and attempted murder of another of his friends during a night a drinking alcohol, smoking weed, and(in at least the case of the shooter) eating mushrooms is attempting to appeal his sentence (74 to life) on four points.
Three of which use the mushrooms as defense:
This isn't the first time this defense has been used. It's a horrible story and the short description the events surrounding the shootings is puzzling. I'm sure the circumstances were far more complex, but it is made to sound as if he got up, got a gun and began storing because was suffering some paranoid delusion.What are your feelings about this? Obviously, a person under the influence of that combination drugs could do all sorts of stupid things, is it the person who committed the crime it the drugs in his system that are responsible?
A man convicted in the murders of two and attempted murder of another of his friends during a night a drinking alcohol, smoking weed, and(in at least the case of the shooter) eating mushrooms is attempting to appeal his sentence (74 to life) on four points.
Three of which use the mushrooms as defense:
.
°Calkins claims that prosecutors during jury selection should not have excused the only African-American from the jury pool. The potential juror had worked for years for a criminal defense law firm that had a pending case representing a pending violent Vacaville criminal who also blamed psilocybin mushrooms for his crimes.
°Calkins claims Judge Donna Stashyn erred by not allowing the defense to tell jurors about the crimes of another violent Vacaville criminal who blamed psilocybin mushrooms for his crimes. Oral arguments in the appeal of that case are scheduled to be heard next week.
°Calkins claims Stashyn should have ordered the mushroom-peddling drug dealer to testify
This isn't the first time this defense has been used. It's a horrible story and the short description the events surrounding the shootings is puzzling. I'm sure the circumstances were far more complex, but it is made to sound as if he got up, got a gun and began storing because was suffering some paranoid delusion.What are your feelings about this? Obviously, a person under the influence of that combination drugs could do all sorts of stupid things, is it the person who committed the crime it the drugs in his system that are responsible?