Site search
sponsored by
News
Sutherlin teen Kelly Erin Irwin had a deeply devoted, intense relationship with Rebecca Ann Machain throughout their friendship in 2004, a psychologist testified in court Tuesday.
The girls, both 15 at the time, hoped to someday live together like sisters. One idea Machain would sometimes mention, Irwin told the psychologist, was to kill the family members Machain lived with.
"Kelly's drive to please Rebecca was very intense," said Dr. Laura Zorich, a private practitioner in Portland who consults for the Oregon Youth Authority.
So when Machain asked Irwin to retrieve one of her father's guns Sept. 30, 2004, Irwin did what she was told. But Irwin, Zorich said, was wrapped up in a fantasy world and never believed anyone would get hurt.
"She had consummate faith in her friend," Zorich said.
When the girls ended up at Machain's home that day with the gun, Irwin claims she finally backed out. She thought that was the end of it, but Machain grabbed the gun in a fury and shot her 14-year-old nephew, Troy Alexander Anderson, through the head.
Irwin, Zorich said, was "very surprised," and now suffers symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Irwin's defense attorneys began their case Tuesday in Douglas County Circuit Court on the sixth day of the teen's murder trial. The fantasy Irwin was reportedly living stemmed from her bi-polar disorder and her immaturity, Zorich said. Her intense relationship with Machain was also a sign of her illness.
Defense attorney Peter Fahy has said Irwin's mental struggles inhibited her ability to form the intent to harm Anderson and therefore show she is not guilty of aggravated murder or murder.
The experts said, for example, that Irwin's manic upswings combined with her underdeveloped adolescent brain caused her to behave erratically and without thought of consequences as her illness progressed. Irwin was known to stay up at night, at times sloppily painting different rooms in her family's home without permission, the experts said. Once, for no apparent reason, she haphazardly stacked the firewood in the garage, blocking the doorway.
When confronted about her behavior, she didn't realize there was anything unusual about it, the experts said. When punished for more destructive behavior, she acted as if nothing were wrong.
"There's little or no insight into the behavior," said Dr. Jerry Larsen, an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health and Science University, of people who experience mania.
Irwin was likely experiencing such a state the week leading up to the shooting, Zorich said. Her destructive behavior had escalated and she wasn't sleeping. She said Irwin's parents, Robert and Debbie Irwin -- who'd taken the teen to a doctor who misdiagnosed her with depression -- planned to find a psychiatrist. Irwin also showed manic behaviors as she spoke with police afterward, Zorich added.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Bill Marshall, who pointed out discrepancies in Irwin's stories to the experts, asked whether people would have noticed if Irwin was manic the day of the shooting.
Zorich said the upswings can be difficult to recognize because people would likely think such behavior was normal for that person.
"I cannot say for certain," she said.
Machain's trial was rescheduled Monday from Dec. 12 to Dec. 5. Irwin's trial continues today.
* You can reach reporter Chelsea Duncan at 957-4246 or by e-mail at cduncan@newsreview.info.
The girls, both 15 at the time, hoped to someday live together like sisters. One idea Machain would sometimes mention, Irwin told the psychologist, was to kill the family members Machain lived with.
"Kelly's drive to please Rebecca was very intense," said Dr. Laura Zorich, a private practitioner in Portland who consults for the Oregon Youth Authority.
So when Machain asked Irwin to retrieve one of her father's guns Sept. 30, 2004, Irwin did what she was told. But Irwin, Zorich said, was wrapped up in a fantasy world and never believed anyone would get hurt.
"She had consummate faith in her friend," Zorich said.
When the girls ended up at Machain's home that day with the gun, Irwin claims she finally backed out. She thought that was the end of it, but Machain grabbed the gun in a fury and shot her 14-year-old nephew, Troy Alexander Anderson, through the head.
Irwin, Zorich said, was "very surprised," and now suffers symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Irwin's defense attorneys began their case Tuesday in Douglas County Circuit Court on the sixth day of the teen's murder trial. The fantasy Irwin was reportedly living stemmed from her bi-polar disorder and her immaturity, Zorich said. Her intense relationship with Machain was also a sign of her illness.
Defense attorney Peter Fahy has said Irwin's mental struggles inhibited her ability to form the intent to harm Anderson and therefore show she is not guilty of aggravated murder or murder.
The experts said, for example, that Irwin's manic upswings combined with her underdeveloped adolescent brain caused her to behave erratically and without thought of consequences as her illness progressed. Irwin was known to stay up at night, at times sloppily painting different rooms in her family's home without permission, the experts said. Once, for no apparent reason, she haphazardly stacked the firewood in the garage, blocking the doorway.
When confronted about her behavior, she didn't realize there was anything unusual about it, the experts said. When punished for more destructive behavior, she acted as if nothing were wrong.
"There's little or no insight into the behavior," said Dr. Jerry Larsen, an associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health and Science University, of people who experience mania.
Irwin was likely experiencing such a state the week leading up to the shooting, Zorich said. Her destructive behavior had escalated and she wasn't sleeping. She said Irwin's parents, Robert and Debbie Irwin -- who'd taken the teen to a doctor who misdiagnosed her with depression -- planned to find a psychiatrist. Irwin also showed manic behaviors as she spoke with police afterward, Zorich added.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Bill Marshall, who pointed out discrepancies in Irwin's stories to the experts, asked whether people would have noticed if Irwin was manic the day of the shooting.
Zorich said the upswings can be difficult to recognize because people would likely think such behavior was normal for that person.
"I cannot say for certain," she said.
Machain's trial was rescheduled Monday from Dec. 12 to Dec. 5. Irwin's trial continues today.
* You can reach reporter Chelsea Duncan at 957-4246 or by e-mail at cduncan@newsreview.info.
