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The judge noted they will break for lunch at 11:30 AM.
The defense called for a second psychologist, Dr. John Danzinger. He started his testimony discussing his background as a medical professional. He's been involved in over 15,000 criminal cases going back to 1988. He has testified for the prosecution before, including death penalty cases in this county.
Danzinger began breaking down addiction and the behaviors that cause significant problems, yet the person continues the behaviors. He said addiction is not usually a choice. There is a voluntary component, but there is a compulsive aspect that can overrule a person's control. Genes are not destiny but you can have a generic or hereditary component that heightens risk. Environment can also change that.
After spending time with Sytch, he believes she has an addiction to alcohol. She reported tolerance to alcohol, having 7-9 drinks a day and withdrawal, including shakes in the morning. He doesn't know for sure but her seizures could have been alcohol withdrawal related. He discussed the cycle that led her to today.
Danziger discussed how the genetic nature and environment could have fed into Sytch's alcohol abuse. The more relatives one has who abuses, the more likely you may as well. He put through an audit he uses in clinical and medical practices that can be helpful in determining with someone needed treatment. Scores run from 0-40. Anything over 8 ae associated with hazardous alcohol use. 16 or more are related to alcohol use disorder. Sytch scored a 31. Her answers were based on the year before she was incarcerated.
It was noted that she had the opportunity to go through treatment but would relapse. As a doctor, you have to wonder what is being missed. If someone isn't getting better, doctors have to wonder if they are missing something. He believes something was missed when it comes to Tammy Sytch. She went through rehab and was treated with anti-depressants but he wasn't getting better. He has to ask why. He said that in his dealings, you would ask if there is bipolar disorder. People don't come in when they are manic, they feel fine. They only come in when they are depressed.
He said that putting someone with that situation, when put on anti-depressants, not mood stabilizers, can get worse because they won't work and that's what happened with Sytch in this situation. The anti-depressants didn't work and she continued to be depressed and her cycle continues with an alcohol abuse and that's how "we come to this situation. In my opinion, she was not diagnosed and treated properly."
If someone has a dual-diagnosis, they can feed into each other. If you only treat one and not the other, they probably aren't going to get better.
He explained the tests used to determine her bipolar disorder. We went into the difficulties of treatment.
They are breaking for lunch. We will resume when they do.
They returned from lunch with Dr. Danzinger continued to testify. They were back discussing his testing of Sytch. Prosecutors were questioning him about what Sytch knew about his testing of her to evaluate her for the defense. He said he had no idea whether his opinions would be helpful or not, as he had not met or evaluated her. The Prosecutors tried to catch him in a statement where he noted he told her that his opinions might be helpful to Sytch.
They began to ask him about Sytch falling into a "risky use" category when it comes to her alcohol use. He said that certainly that's why they are here today. He started there are very few disorders that are purely genetic but the more relatives you have with one, the greater the risk you have for illness. If you have a lot of alcoholics in your family, it should make you cautious about your own usage.
He stated that she was amenable to getting treatment. He said he would use a mood stabilizer and names several possible medications. He would prefer not to use medications that would add to her weight gain and diabetes.
He was asked about his experiences working with the Department of Corrections. He agreed he would be familiar with medications available to prisoners and said they would be generics. The basic implication from the prosecutors was that Sytch could be treated in prison.
Sytch's defense then brought it back to Sytch needing intensive therapy. Dr, Danzinger agreed with what Dr. Fabian testified about earlier. The solution is not just medication based.
The Judge asked if he was aware of how long Sytch was getting mental health help. He said that earliest documentation he saw was 2014.
That was it for Dr. Danzinger.
The defense intended to call someone else but they were informed this morning they had an issue and they will not be calling anyone else.
Coverage continues on Page 3.
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