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Norway killer Breivik of 'sound mind', argue defence team

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Sunday, June 24, 2012

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The defence team for Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian man who killed 77 people last year, have argued he was sane at the time of the attack. The hearing Friday concluded the trial for last July's bomb and gun attacks; Breivik admits carrying out the killings, but denies criminal responsibility.

A special courtroom has been built for the trial.
Image: Ulflarsen.

The outcome of the trial rests on whether Breivik was sane when on July 22 last year he detonated a car bomb near government buildings in Oslo before shooting dead 69 and injuring a further 242 on the island of Utøya. He has been the subject of two court-appointed psychiatric assessments; the first concluded he was psychotic, but the second found him sane. Prosecutor Svein Holden said Thursday that the differing reports left room for doubt and requested that the court see Breivik "transferred to compulsory psychiatric care".

Breivik defends his attacks as necessary, claiming self-defence in a campaign against "Islamisation" of Norway. The defence team portray Breivik's earlier life as ordinary and mundane, with no evidence of insanity. They argue his extremist views, and choice of targets, show political motive.

Breivik also addressed the court Friday. While he testified, the families of victims protested by walking out of the court.

The court is to conclude whether his actions were an act of political terrorism or of insanity, with a final ruling on August 24.


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Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

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Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.

The text of this article is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License
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