http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/news/national/psychopaths-educ.html Potential Killer or Just Disturbed? Psych Class Seeks Distinction By KAREN W. ARENSON NEW YORK -- The 20-year-old man with a Mohawk haircut, multicolored pigtails, tattooed arms and rings on every finger was an engineering student at a New York college when he sent e-mail to a public official threatening to torture him and rape his young daughter. The FBI arrested the student a few days later as he sat in his pajamas eating breakfast. Late last year, the case landed on the desk of Dr. Naftali Berrill, a forensic psychologist who had conducted court-ordered examinations of Joel Rifkin, the serial killer, and Colin Ferguson, the Long Island Rail Road killer. Now, Berrill is using the e-mail case in the class he teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan. The class is part of the college's fastest-growing area of study: forensic psychology. Six years ago there were 96 students in the masters program; now there are 271. "There is a fascination with this stuff," said Berrill, who assigns movies like "Klute," "Silence of the Lambs" and "Psycho" as homework, along with articles in scientific journals. "Popular culture has gone nuts with the idea of taking someone who has committed a crime and profiling the person, thinking about why he did it, what is behind it." The goal on a recent day was to get his students to judge whether the tattooed man was fit to stand trial, whether he was legally responsible for his behavior, or whether he might be considered legally insane, and whether he is in need of treatment. Berrill had evaluated the man and knew the court's ruling, but he wasn't about to tell his students until the exercise was over. "How should the young man be handled?" he asked the students. "Is he really dangerous or is he only sick? Is prison appropriate or does he need medical treatment?" First, the students wanted more information. They did not have the young man to question, so they began firing questions at their professor. Did the young man have prior problems with the law? Berrill shook his head no. Any history of psychological problems? Berrill reported that the young man had "apparently always been an odd duck, a person who felt separated from the group and who capitalized on his oddness." Since his arrest, he says he has had fleeting ideas of killing himself. How did he behave when arrested? He spoke quietly and his speech was fluent, articulate and terse. His reaction was more surprise than remorse. Any other unusual behavior? He used to have fantasies of protecting people beset by attackers. Sometimes he sensed the taste of chocolate, even when he had none in his mouth. Sometimes he walked around New York City with knives strapped to his chest and arms. For half an hour, the psychological sleuthing continued: What kind of family history did he have? He was the last of several children in an Irish-American working-class family, and he had brothers who had been arrested for drug use. Was he overprotected and coddled? The young man had said he was well cared for, but it was difficult to learn whether there was true affection. Finally, the students were ready to lay out their theories. The young man showed signs of a narcissistic personality disorder or a histrionic personality disorder, some said. He might have sent the e-mail message just to get attention, adding the rape threat for shock value but not really as something he intended to carry out. One group thought the student himself had been abused. And some saw his threats as reflections of his own sexual inadequacy. Some students suggested blood tests and psychological tests to see if he was depressed. For many students, the analysis was better than an evening in front of the television set. "I love it," said Adrienne Higgins, a former florist who returned to college and hopes to go on for a Ph.D. in neuropsychology. Eva Norvind, who has a master's degree in health education and counsels sexual deviants, calls the class one of her most challenging. Some students go on to earn doctoral degrees in psychology and begin a practice. Others go to law school, and still others go into social service or police work. But Berrill estimates that about a third of the students take the class to indulge in their own fascination with crime. Berrill got to the heart of the question: "If you were in law enforcement, is he a dangerous person?" Most class members nodded yes. The most telling piece of evidence, said one student, was "the fact that he was walking around the city, like an armed bomb waiting to go off." And the dissenters? "He needs help. I am very concerned about the homicidal and suicidal thoughts." Another commented, "In terms of being dangerous, he has no history. His use of e-mail shows a fear of social contact, and that doesn't fit the character type of a killer." Berrill was pleased. He had one more question: Does the young man have a shot at the insanity defense? No, most students said. "He was aware of everything he was doing," said one. "But he would be helpful to an attorney." Berrill beamed. In his view, the class had captured the important elements. "If I were asked by a judge," he told them, "I would say he is dangerous. Always err on the conservative side. He is in need of mental health services. But incarceration? No. He is not psychologically equipped to deal with real criminals or psychopaths." The court concurred. Earlier this year, a judge put the young man on probation and directed him to seek psychological counseling. - Igor.