Attorneys to use mental defect defense in Katherine Ann Olson’s murder

Craigslist murder suspect’s attorneys raise possibility of mental illness defense:

I should have seen this coming yet I was still surprised.

The attorneys for Michael John Anderson will be filing a motion stating that they might be using a mental illness defense for the murder of Katherine Ann Olson. They’re claiming that Anderson has Asperger’s syndrome. They’re basically claiming that he didn’t know the difference between right or wrong because of his Asperger’s. Last time I checked that’s not one of the effects of Asperger’s and is an insult to people who legitimately have it.

Asperger’s patients have a hard time interacting socially because they are unable to detect things like sarcasm and some forms of humor. They also can be obsessed over a singular subject. It DOES NOT make you take an ad for a nanny job on craigslist for the sole purpose of shooting someone in the head.

This is not the first time I’ve read about a lawyer using this defense. For the most part, this defense has been unsuccessful. If lawyers keep using this defense than people will begin to think that Asperger’s does make you criminally violent.