Antidepressants and murder: case not closed
BMJ 2017; 358 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j3697 (Published 02 August 2017) Cite this as: BMJ 2017;358:j3697- Gwen Adshead, consultant forensic psychiatrist
- Ravenswood House, Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust, Hampshire, UK
- g.adshead{at}nhs.net
Samuel Johnson observed in 1734 that it was “incident among physicians to mistake subsequence for consequence.” His observation might apply more to journalists; and especially the BBC Panorama programme “A Prescription for Murder,” broadcast on 26 July. The programme’s premise was that a rare side effect of antidepressants may be to induce violent thoughts; and it offered as evidence the case of James Holmes, who in July 2012 went into a cinema in Aurora, Colorado, and shot into the audience, killing 12 people and injuring 56 others. Holmes did not deny his role in the massacre, although at trial he offered a defence of not guilty by reason of insanity, which was not accepted by the jury.
A current trend among journalists is to review criminal cases and suggest that …