A Saskatoon Crown prosecutor is challenging a forensic psychiatrist’s conclusion that Blake Schreiner was incapable of knowing that killing his partner Tammy Brown was wrong.
Dr. Mansfield Mela has diagnosed Schreiner with schizotypal personality disorder, a condition on the schizophrenia spectrum that manifests in paranoia, misinterpretation of everyday events and “magical thinking,” among other symptoms. Mela said the accused had the disorder at the time he killed his partner.
Crown prosecutor Melodi Kujawa focused on how Mela compiled his report assessing Schreiner. The doctor’s analysis included three journals Schreiner wrote before stabbing Tammy 80 times on Jan. 29, 2019.
Defence lawyer Brad Mitchell has stated he will argue his client is not criminally responsible (NCR) for the killing.
Along with to-do lists and other topics, the journal entries document Schreiner’s repeated use of hallucinogenic mushrooms, including a perceived event where he became an eagle, soared through the cosmos and redirected meteors from reaching Earth.
Mela agreed with Kujawa that the mushrooms trips sounded “similar” to visions Schreiner shared with the psychiatrist.
The forensic psychiatrist also acknowledged that none of the journals written prior to the homicide included the term “Illuminati,” though Schreiner has testified that he didn’t say anything about the so-called secret organization because he feared for his safety.
Court heard Kujawa and Mela go through Schreiner’s medical records from 2003 to 2019. At no point did Schreiner report hearing voices or having paranoia, though he previously told court it was never mentioned because he worried about being killed.
Mela’s assessment referenced reports created while Schreiner was being held at Saskatchewan Hospital. Neither included a schizotypal personality disorder diagnosis.
Questioned on whether he asked Schreiner’s family about symptoms of schizotypal personality disorder in the accused, Mela answer no.
“I took his word and my observations,” Mela said.
The forensic psychiatrist acknowledged he didn’t ask Schreiner about his statement to police. Mela said he reviewed the transcript of the conversation but didn’t watch the video recording.
Mela’s report came after two interviews of his own with Schreiner: one in July 2019 and another in November 2019. In the first, the accused stated he used magic mushrooms in the hours before Tammy’s death, while in the second, Schreiner said he hadn’t used mushrooms for six weeks beforehand.
After his first meeting with Mela, Schreiner submitted a set of journals titled “NCR materials.” In court, Mela said he never read a page in which Schreiner stated “it happened a bit different from how I said earlier, but not much.”
Schreiner said he read a news story about the potential legalization of magic mushrooms in Colorado and saw a poster in Saskatchewan Hospital that he interpreted as communication from a secret organization.
“I also took this as a message that it would help me to be NCR,” the page reads.
Mela maintained that he believes Schreiner’s second version of events.
The judge-alone trial, overseen by Justice Ron Mills, is scheduled to continue Wednesday at Saskatoon’s Court of Queen’s Bench. The Crown’s cross-examination of Mela is expected to continue Wednesday.
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