TUCSON, Ariz. — A forensic psychologist who evaluated convicted double murderer Shawna Forde testified Thursday that the former Everett woman is remorseful and feels empathy for her surviving victim.
Forde was convicted Monday of orchestrating a home invasion robbery that left Gina Gonzalez with bullet wounds, and caused the deaths of her husband, Raul Flores, 29, and their daughter, Brisenia, 9.
A Pima County Superior Court jury now must decide whether Forde should receive a death sentence for her role in the May 2009 raid in Arivaca, Ariz., a few miles north of the border with Mexico.
Dr. Judith Becker, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Arizona, testified that she met with Forde for roughly 7 hours. Besides administering tests, Becker conducted a clinical interview during which Forde told her that she felt remorse for Gonzalez.
“She said she had lost a child and knew what it was like to lose a child,” Becker said. Forde’s first child, a daughter, died while still an infant.
Within hours of the jury finding her guilty on Monday, Forde spoke at the jailhouse with veteran Arizona reporter Terry Greene Sterling for an article on the online news site The Daily Beast. Forde reportedly told her she can’t apologize for what happened to Gonzalez because she’s not responsible, but she does feel empathy for the woman’s loss.
Forde defense attorney Jill Thorpe asked Becker if she would be surprised to learn that Forde had “called a press conference” after being convicted in a capital murder case.
“That does not surprise me,” she said. “It shows poor judgment.”
Earlier in her testimony, Becker said Forde has a “mood disorder not otherwise specified.” She said she also found “chronic traumatic stress disorder,” as well as “personality disorder not otherwise specified, with borderline and narcissistic tendencies.”
Becker testified that narcissistic traits include wanting to be viewed “as a big deal, as someone very important” who tends to exhibit “attention-getting behavior.”
Jurors have heard testimony that Forde had a difficult childhood that included abandonment, abuse and time behind bars for burglary and teenage prostitution convictions.
The jury asked Becker if victims of abuse have murdered people and if they are able to know right from wrong.
“There have been victims of abuse who have committed murder,” she testified. “Is it possible for them to know right from wrong? Absolutely.”
The jury also asked Becker if it would be possible for someone like Forde to lead a complex operation such as Minutemen American Defense, the border-watch group Forde founded.
“Not very effectively,” Becker testified.
Closing arguments in the penalty phase of Forde’s trial are likely Friday.
More details
Dave Ricker has been blogging in detail about Forde’s trial. His posts are at Ricker’s Radar Screen, http://strega5742.blogspot.com.
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