Toolan Murder Trial

[Sequoia]

Defense experts say Toolan was impaired by brain damage

NANTUCKET — Defense attorney Kevin Reddington rested his case yesterday with two more experts who said his client, Thomas Toolan III, couldn't be held responsible for killing ex-girlfriend Elizabeth "Beth" Lochtefeld in 2004 because mental defects made him unable to control himself.

Toolan's insanity at the time he allegedly flew from his home in New York City to Nantucket and stabbed Lochtefeld 23 times was caused by a mix of factors, the experts told jurors. They said brain damage from years of alcohol and drug abuse caused him to be less inhibited and more likely to act on impulse, which combined with heightened emotions from his breakup with Lochtefeld and his drunken, possibly drugged-out state at the time of the slaying.

At the time of the slaying, Toolan suffered dementia, psychosis, a mild form of bipolar disorder and major depression, according to testimony from Anthony Joseph, an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He was also abusing prescription drugs around the time of the killing, including Zoloft, Vicodin, a tranquilizer for his dog, and a muscle relaxant he ordered from Tijuana, Mexico, Joseph said. Toolan was also on Clonapam, a sedative in the valium family that "can make people homicidal," Joseph said.

At the time of his interviews with doctors in preparation for trial, Toolan also exhibited paranoia and obsessive compulsive behaviors, according to testimony.

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=SPECIAL10

I found out about this trail about two weeks ago and also found out a book had been written about it, "Safe Harbor: A Murder in Nantucket", by Brian McDonald.