Current experience.
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Six people die. The defense says he couldn't tell right from wrong.
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The capital murder trial of Shane James Jr. examines a series of shootings that left six people dead and three injured in Texas.
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James is accused of killing his parents before traveling to Austin and carrying out more shootings in December 2023.
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But the main fight in the courtroom is now about his mental state.
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On November 6, forensic psychologist Dr. Mullimichael McClendon testified that James was experiencing a particularly complex set of delusions.
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She told jurors he believed mysterious forces controlled his thoughts and actions, and concluded he was legally insane during the shootings.
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The plaintiffs dispute this conclusion.
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They argue that James' conduct shows that he understood that what he was doing was wrong.
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A psychiatric diagnosis alone does not establish legal insanity under Texas law.
⠀ The jury must decide whether James was legally responsible for his actions at the time of the murders.
⠀ Watch the opening of the arguments in the trials and initial testimony ⠀.