Tree of Life synagogue shooter has history of mental illness: expert

The gunman involved in the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting was said to have a “very serious mental health history” and a “markedly abnormal” brain, a defense expert testified Wednesday.

Robert Bowers, the 50-year-old truck driver from Baldwin, Pa., was convicted this month for the deadliest attack against Jewish people in U.S. history, in which he killed 11 worshippers at the Tree of Life synagogue.

The defense is seeking to convince the jury to spare his life, while federal prosecutors are pushing for a death sentence.

Dr. Siddhartha Nadkarni, a neurologist who examined Bowers in 2021, took the stand as a defense expert and revealed that Bowers suffers from schizophrenia, a brain disorder characterized by delusions and hallucinations.

“I think he was living on the margins” when the attack occurred, Nadkarni added. “He was isolated.”

Through the testimony, Bowers’ legal team was attempting to show that his mental illness impeded his ability to form an intent to kill.

Attorneys presented evidence of his multiple suicide attempts since adolescence, an incident in which he attempted to light his mother on fire and his commitment for psychiatric treatment on at least three separate occasions.

Nadkarni testified that Bowers exhibited a “flat, rigid affect” during the examination and had a delusion about ink seeping from his prison uniform into his body, causing his prison wristband to change color.

Prosecutors argue that Bowers was motivated by antisemitism when he committed the killings. “His intent is crystal clear from his actions and from his words,” said prosecutor Troy Rivetti.

Prior to the 2018 attack, Bowers frequently expressed his hatred toward Jewish people on social media and proclaimed to police after the incident that “all these Jews need to die.”

Under cross examination, Nadkarni clarified that Bowers was not completely incapable of planning the attack but noted that “his reasons for planning it out are unreliable in his brain.”

Three local doctors who reviewed Bowers’ brain scan results testified on Tuesday that the data appeared mostly normal, with some indications of possible seizures or other issues.

With News Wire Services