| Stephen H. Kessler | |
|---|---|
| Born | Stephen H. Kessler 1935 (age 88–89) |
| Motive | Insanity |
| Conviction(s) | Not guilty by reason of insanity |
| Criminal charge | Murder |
| Penalty | Committed |
Stephen H. Kessler (born 1935) is a person who was known as the "LSD Killer".
Education
He attended Harvard College and graduated class of '57, and was enrolled in Downstate Medical School in 1964, but was asked to leave because of his unstable behaviour.
Trial
He was arrested in April 1966 and tried for murder in October, having apparently stabbed his mother-in-law 105 times. Headlines trumpeted him as a "Mad LSD Slayer" and "LSD Killer", based on a statement made during his arrest that he had been "flying for three days on LSD". His LSD usage, a month prior, was not mentioned during the trial proceedings. His drug use was revealed as having been "one-and-a-half grains of phenobarbital" and "three quarts of lab alcohol".
Psychiatrists testified that he actually had chronic paranoid schizophrenia and he was found not guilty by reason of insanity.
See also
- Maurice Edelbaum, one of Kessler's lawyers
References
- Stevens, Jay (1988). Storming heaven : LSD and the American dream (1st Perennial Library ed.). New York: Perennial Library. ISBN 0-06-097172-X.
- "Trials: Two States of Mind". Time Magazine. November 3, 1967. Archived from the original on December 15, 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
- "NY Man 'Flying On LSD' Kills Mother-in-Law". The Daily Republic. Mitchell, South Dakota. 12 Apr 1966. p. 2. Retrieved 12 September 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
- "A Slaying Suspect Tells of LSD Spree: Medical Student Charged in Mother-in-Law's Death". New York Times. 12 April 1966. p. 1.(subscription required)
- Stafford, Peter; technical editor, Jeremy Bigwood ; (1992). Psychedelics encyclopedia (3rd expanded ed.). Berkeley, CA: Ronin Pub. p. 62. ISBN 0914171518.
{{cite book}}:|author2=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Grinspoon, Lester; Bakalar, James B. (1998). Psychedelic drugs reconsidered (2nd print ed.). New York: Lindesmith Center. p. 173. ISBN 0964156857.
- Stafford, Peter; technical editor: Jeremy Bigwood; foreword by Andrew Weil; introduction by Dan Joy (1992). "The LSD Family". Psychedelics encyclopedia (3rd expanded ed.). Berkeley, CA: Ronin Pub. p. 62. ISBN 0914171518.
{{cite book}}:|author2=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ANDERSON, F. DAVID (October 26, 1967). "Jury Acquits Kessler in LSD Murder". New York Times. p. 57. Retrieved 17 December 2012.(subscription required)
External links
- ANDERSON, F. DAVID (October 10, 1967). "MURDER SUSPECT TELLS OF LSD USE; He Says He Can't Recall if He Killed Mother-in-Law". New York Times. p. 37. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
- "Jury Told Kessler Took an LSD Cube Before the Slaying". New York Times. October 12, 1967. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
- "1967 Press Photo Stephen H. Kessler found not guilty by reason of insanity". Historic Images. Retrieved 12 September 2016.