"He's Not Insane!" Says Final "Crockefeller" Witness
BOSTON (AP) The man who calls himself Clark Rockefeller exaggerated his symptoms of mental illness and was not insane when he kidnapped his 7-year-old daughter, a psychiatrist testifying for the prosecution said at the man's the kidnapping trial Thursday.
Dr. James Chu, a psychiatrist at McLean Hospital, was the trial's final witness. He was called by prosecutors to rebut the testimony of two defense mental health experts who said Rockefeller suffers from a delusional disorder and was legally insane when he took his daughter during a supervised visit last July and fled to Baltimore.
Chu said Rockefeller, whose real name is Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, was not suffering from delusions and knew it was wrong to take his daughter. He said he based his opinion in part on evidence that Gerhartsreiter planned the kidnapping for months and later tried to conceal it.
"I couldn't find anything other than that he is responsible for whatever criminal activity he is charged with," Chu said. He added, "I felt that he clearly understood the wrongfulness of his conduct."
That conclusion is opposite what defense experts said: that Gerhartsreiter's mental health problems are so severe, he isn't responsible for actions.
Prosecutors claim that the German-born Gerhartsreiter, 48, is a con man who has told countless lies about himself since moving to the United States as a teenager in 1978.
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