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rfmcdonaldThe Toronto Star's Alyshah Hasham has been reporting extensively from the trial of the two men convicted of plotting to attack VIA Rail trains. The first, Raed Jaser, was the subject of a report Monday: "Convicted terrorist actually motivated by drug addiction, psychologist testifies".
Tuesday, Chieh Esseghaier was the subject of the article "Psychiatrist says Via Rail terrorist likely mentally unfit to continue sentencing hearing".
If this is actually true, this would tend to confirm much of the research suggesting that terrorism is something that people in good positions actually do not do.
Rather than being a terrorist who plotted the murder of Canadians with his co-accused and an undercover FBI agent, Raed Jaser was trying to con his way into getting money to support his lifelong drug and alcohol addiction, a clinical psychologist testified Monday during Jaser’s sentencing hearing.
Jaser also says he was high on hashish each of the five times he met with the undercover agent, the psychologist’s report states.
A jury found Jaser, 38, guilty of three terrorism-related offences after a six-week trial and ten days of deliberations. His co-accused Chiheb Esseghaier was convicted on five counts including plotting to derail a Via Rail train, killing the passengers on board. The jury remained deadlocked on whether Jaser was part of the train plot.
On Monday, the psychologist who conducted an assessment of Jaser, testified that in his opinion Jaser “does not represent the typical pattern and motivation of someone representing and being involved with radical Islam.” His were “the actions of someone desperate to stay high, who would do anything to stay high,” Dr. Jess Ghannam testified on behalf of the defence.
Ghannam, 58, is a clinical psychologist and professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. The court heard that he has consulted on rehabilitation and risk assessment in several terrorism cases in the U.S.
Tuesday, Chieh Esseghaier was the subject of the article "Psychiatrist says Via Rail terrorist likely mentally unfit to continue sentencing hearing".
The man convicted of plotting to derail a Via Rail train and murder the passengers on board may suffer from schizophrenia and is “clearly psychotic at this juncture,” according to a forensic psychiatrist, court heard Tuesday.
“I believe that (Chiheb) Esseghaier is unable to participate meaningfully in the proceedings at this juncture, and is more likely than not unfit,” Dr. Lisa Ramshaw wrote in her psychiatric assessment submitted during the sentencing hearing.
Esseghaier, 32, has chosen to represent himself throughout the court process including the jury trial earlier this year where he was convicted of terrorism-related offences, along with his co-accused Raed Jaser.
Superior Court Justice Michael Code told the court Tuesday that he did not consider Ramshaw’s report alone as a reason to explore Esseghaier’s mental fitness before continuing the sentencing hearing, but would hear Ramshaw’s testimony before coming to a decision.
A finding that Esseghaier is currently unfit to continue, or an order to conduct a full hearing into the matter, could lead to serious complications in the case. A further assessment of what Esseghaier’s mental state was during the trial and at the time of the offence could be ordered, potentially raising concerns about the findings of the jury.
If this is actually true, this would tend to confirm much of the research suggesting that terrorism is something that people in good positions actually do not do.
