But Christopher L. Ferguson Jr., 41, who was accused of carrying out the fatal assault, was outspoken about this. He was diagnosed with bipolar disorder nearly 20 years ago, and his life has been a “storm” ever since.
Years of his own writings, court filings, and conversations with friends and neighbors have left his struggles and criminal allegations in a state that is crumbling under the surging demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic. It details a man who highlights the fragility of the mental health system. , needs an overhaul that gives families more power to help their relatives.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office said the victims Gilda D’Amore, 73, her husband Bruno, 74, and her mother Lucia Arpino, 97, were believed to be victims of the “indiscriminate” attack. Announced. The Damores had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary the day before. Their loved ones were worried that they had not come to church to renew their vows on Sunday morning.
Ferguson’s fate now rests with the criminal justice system, which will weigh his criminal charges against his mental state at the time prosecutors claimed he murdered Mr. Damores and Mr. Arpino in his home. deaf.
Ferguson’s attorneys have already said they will pursue “specific psychological issues” that could affect the case, and have received permission from the court to spend $5,000 on a psychological evaluation of their client. said he got it. Ferguson has been charged with first-degree murder in the murder of Gilda D’Amore, and faces additional charges in assaulting her husband and her mother. he pleaded not guilty.
A few days after the arraignment, the judge granted Fel’s transfer request.
Gusson was taken to Bridgewater State Hospital, where authorities will assess his ability to stand trial and assess criminal charges. Ferguson’s attorney, Dmitry Lev, said in a statement that he “expressed his deepest condolences” to the victim’s family, but declined to name his client.
He said it was important that the case proceeded “in a court of law and not in a court of public opinion.” Some of Ferguson’s relatives declined to be interviewed by The Globe or did not respond to requests for comment.
However, police interviews outlined some details about Ferguson’s mental state. Ferguson’s ex-girlfriend told investigators that Ferguson had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and had been experiencing manic episodes since February, according to an affidavit filed in court. His sister, who lives with him, described his recent behavior as “insane.”
Ilana, one of Ferguson’s neighbors Mr Margaret said: My sister told her he was in the hospital for mental health problems. He was admitted to the hospital in early June, but returned home by June 20, despite his family’s desire to extend his stay.
The Middlesex Attorney’s Office declined to comment.
When a loved one with mental illness is indicted in a criminal case, the family usually expects the family to receive “consistent, high-quality care,” said Robert Kinscherf, professor of clinical psychology at William James College in Newton. It is said to tell a similar story about the difficulty of .
“There can be ups and downs in the disease course. They get better. They get worse. They’re in treatment. They’re out of treatment,” says Massachusetts General. Kinschaaf, who is also executive director of the hospital’s Center for Law, Brain and Behavior, said.
Using the online publishing platform Medium, Ferguson wrote about being diagnosed with bipolar disorder in his early 20s, being hospitalized for psychiatric treatment while living in California, and contemplating suicide. It seems He also wrote frequently about his struggles on his now-deleted website. Black and Bipolar.net.
The National Institute of Mental Health defines bipolar disorder as a mental illness that causes abnormal changes in a person’s mood, energy, activity level, and ability to concentrate, making it difficult to perform daily tasks.
Ferguson grew up in Newton and showed promise in his youth. In 2004 he received a BA in American Studies and Ethnology from the University of Southern California with a minor in Spanish. Records show that a year earlier he had joined the school’s chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, a prestigious academic honors body.
In 2019, he announced on Facebook that he published an e-book, Singular and Focused: Reflections on Goal Orientation, Advancement, and Achievement.
“The road to greatness is a never-ending process of paying dues,” he wrote in his motivational text.
Posts about bipolar disorder became a topic repeatedly. In 2014, he shared a news story about actor Lee Thompson Young, known for his role in the television show The Famous Jet Jackson, who committed suicide after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Ferguson writes that they were students at the University of Southern California at the same time.
“Knowing that we have the same diagnosis was heartbreaking, as it’s often said,” Ferguson wrote.
He also compared his mental health to Ye, the musician formerly known as Kanye West, and his diagnosis of bipolar disorder to a “sprained brain.”
“Looking back at my hard work in grad school, I was essentially a running back running 1,000 yards a season with a torn knee ligament,” Ferguson wrote in July 2020. .
His website had nearly 40 blog posts. The archived documents viewed by The Globe are primarily from his April 2020 to August 2021 period.
Ferguson wrote of his manic episodes: Between 2005 and 2014, he had five seizures. He wrote that the attacks occurred about 18 to 24 months apart and resulted in 11 hospitalizations.
The episode “wrecked everything from finances, academic and professional endeavors, housing and relationships,” he wrote. “Eight years have passed since these nearly ten years of utterly unpleasant days, and I no longer have to worry about a recurrence.”
Ferguson wrote that he was treated and prescribed medication, but that he “self-medicated” his alcohol, smoking and marijuana use. “
Adam Caramanica, who grew up in Newton and recently contacted Ferguson, said Ferguson: expressed dissatisfaction with the management of bipolar disorder.
“He told me how he had this problem and how he tried to get help but it didn’t work,” said Karamanica, who lives in San Diego.
Kinschaaf, a professor of clinical psychology, said it was important to be open-minded about people with mental illness. While there have been examples of people with mental illness who have committed serious crimes because of their illness, “most people do no harm, and if they do, they are likely to harm themselves.” ” he said.
Keith Halpern, a lawyer who has defended people with mental illness in murder cases, said: most of them said The defendant has relatives who have spent years trying to help.
He said families describe the mental health system as a revolving door that allows patients to leave hospitals before they are ready because their health insurance coverage has expired. Halpern also reports that there is no effective way to ensure that people take their prescribed psychiatric medications.
Summarizing their story, he said: “This system is a total disaster.”
Lisa Daley, executive director of the nonprofit Center for Treatment Advocacy in Arlington, Virginia, said Massachusetts does not have an outpatient civil duty law that authorizes courts to keep mentally ill patients receiving treatment, including psychiatric care. It said it was one of three states. medicine.
Critics, including the Public Lawyer Services Commission, say such an approach is coercive and has “proven to be ineffective.”
“People’s willingness to participate is necessary for treatment to be successful,” says CPCS attorney Laura Sanford.
Mr. Daley objected, saying the system would give patients who had difficulty adhering to treatment a chance to recover rather than drop out.
Psychiatric care in traditional clinical settings can be challenging, and some patients experience discrimination, diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, and trauma survivors who are state-certified as piercing specialists. said Thomas Brown of to help others recover.
“We often think that once we put people in a psychiatric hospital, they’re fine, they’re safe, they’re getting what they need,” he says. “Generally, that doesn’t happen.”
On the day of the murder, investigators gathered evidence that allegedly linked Ferguson to the triple murder, including a backpack containing Ferguson’s ID, footprints and surveillance video. After police arrived at his home, he was called an ambulance and taken to a hospital in Boston, where he was forcibly held for 72 hours for psychiatric treatment.
The next day, police charged Ferguson with murder.
Laura Crimaldi can be reached at [email protected]. follow her on her twitter @lauracrimaldi. Sean Cotter can be reached at [email protected]. Follow us on Twitter. @Cotter Reporter. John Hilliard can be reached at [email protected].
